Juanita J. (Brown) Dow

Juanita Joyce (Brown) Dow, 88, of rural Ney, OH, passed away on Tuesday, November 19, 2024.

Joycie, as many knew her by, was born in her parent’s farmhouse on June 26, 1936 to Merl and Phyllis (Peterson) Brown. She was the oldest of 8 children. Joycie attended the Ney school that used to sit on the corner of The Bend and Bostater Road outside of Ney. It was during high school that she began her first “off the farm” job at the Shears Store in Ney. On April  5, 1954, Joycie married Richard James Dow who was in the U.S. Air Force. Richard preceded her in death on November 5, 2009.

Throughout their early years of marriage, Joycie moved wherever Richard was stationed in the U.S. and when he was overseas, she would move back to Ney to work at local restaurants. In 1960, Richard was sent to Germany through the Air Force. Joycie was able to follow him there so they could live together. She held a few jobs while in Germany, traveled with Richard and new Air Force friends, and learned to speak German.

Upon their return to the United States, Joycie gave birth to their first child, Julie Dow. Richard and Joycie would have two sons a few years later; Jimmy Dow and Johnny Dow. It was around this time that Joycie began her over 30 year commitment to Bryan Custom Plastics (BCP), now Yeng Feng. Joycie was very proud to serve BCP as ‘Union Stewardess’.
Joycie and Richard spent their life working and saving to travel. They owned numerous campers and RVs in their lifetime. They traveled with each other, their children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, neighbor kids, and family friends. Joycie always wanted to give others the opportunity to see the wonders of the United States and always would come up with the money to include others on their trips. They took numerous trips out west to National Parks, and visited Disney World twenty times. In her lifetime, Joycie was able to travel to every state in the United States with the exception of Hawaii. Joycie was preceded in death by her parents; husband; brothers, Ed Brown and Paul Brown; sisters, Helen Harr and Mary Lou Lane; sister-in-law, Cecelia Brown; brother-in-law, Larry Engel.

She is survived by a daughter, Julie Dow; sons, Jimmy Dow and Johnny Dow; grandchildren; Jennifer Dow and Adam Stockman, great-grandchildren, Dawson Stratton, Avery Stockman, Peyton Dow-Rosebrock and Ayla Dow; siblings, Darlene Pessefall, Bruce Brown, and Charlene Engel; sister-in-law, Mary Jo Brown; brother-in-law, Dennis Harr.

Visitation for Joycie will take place on Sunday, November, 24, 2024, at Schaffer Funeral Home South, Lawson-Roessner Chapel, 1753 S. Clinton Street, Defiance, Ohio, from 1:00-4:00 P.M. Funeral services will also be held at Schaffer Funeral Home South on Monday, November 25, 2024, beginning at 1:00 P.M., with visitation held an hour prior to the service. The burial will take place at Riverview Memorial Gardens.

Memorials in Juanita's memory may be made to the family, c/o Jennifer Dow, PO Box 3 West Unity Ohio 43570. 

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Juanita J. (Brown) Dow, please visit our floral store.