Joyce Bormuth Of Southampton Dies July 17

Joyce Bormuth was born on August 1, 1930, in Southampton Hospital to Winfred and Helen Finson.

She grew up on Henry Street in the village of Southampton and graduated from Southampton High School.

As a young woman, Joyce took modeling classes at the Barbizon School of Modeling. After posing for local art classes, she entered and won a beauty contest in large part due to the support of one of the judges, actor Peter Lawford.

Joyce attended Florida Southern College and graduated Summa Cum Laude with a degree in English. She loved her alma mater, and especially appreciated the Frank Lloyd Wright architecture of the campus buildings. 

She later received a Master’s degree in Education so that she could teach locally.

Joyce was a popular Southampton High School substitute teacher, a Tuckahoe School teacher, and a seventh and eighth grade teacher at Our Lady of Poland. Joyce introduced and taught Spanish classes to the parochial students because she wanted them to be as prepared for high school Spanish as their public school counterparts.

Joyce loved teaching and adored running into 
past students, whom she always remembered.  She 
received countless smiles, hugs, updates, and loved reminiscing with her students, throughout her life.

In 1953, Joyce married the handsome Sheldon Jackson and together they had four beautiful daughters. After they divorced, Joyce had a second chance at love and married Robert Bormuth. They were married for nearly thirty years until his death in 2002. Bobby’s three children from a previous marriage and Joyce’s four girls were an original blended family.

Joyce and Bobby loved traveling the world with their close friends including Sheila and Kevin Guidera and Connie and Joe Butler. Stories of their adventures live on forever.

Joyce also worked at the Southampton Chamber of Commerce in the little brick house on Main Street. She welcomed visitors, assisted with their inquiries, but she especially relished her visits with locals working in the village. Everyone loved to stop by and chat with Joyce. Students, visitors, old friends and new -- consistently and aptly described her as a true lady: classy, kind, intelligent, funny, and extremely generous.

Joyce and her sister Joan (aka “Big Foo” and “Little Foo”) loved their parents’ antique store on Hill Street, The Hel-Win-Find-It Shop, where they developed an appreciation for antiques. Later, Joyce brought that knowledge and enthusiasm to Sheila Guidera’s Second Chance. For many years she adored working with her co-workers and sharing Village Cheese Shoppe lunches. She so loved the work and well into her eighties she volunteered at the Southampton Hospital Thrift Shop, never quite letting go of the joy in finding an antique treasure.

Joyce attended the First Presbyterian Church of Southampton where she enrolled her daughters in Sunday School.

Faith was an integral part of who she was. When life took its challenging twists and turns, Joyce’s positivity and perseverance inspired all.  The epitome of grace under pressure, she worked multiple jobs to support her daughters. They were everything to Joyce throughout her life. Her parenting was rooted in love, being fair and resilient, and showing them what it meant to be a good person by being a good person.

Blessed with natural beauty, Joyce was a lifelong fashionista. She had an innate gift of style and a knack for pulling an outfit together. One could always find her accessorized with signature pearls,

curly hair, flattering lipstick, statement earrings, and her favorite Jack Rogers sandals.

She lived for her summers at George Semerjian’s Bath and Tennis Club, tanning with cocktails on the beach and playing bridge on the ocean deck. Ever the social butterfly, Joyce loved attending parties, playing card games, doing the NY Times crossword puzzle in ink, and beating everybody at Jeopardy!

She was a lifelong learner, and in her nineties loved taking notes from The History Channel to share with family and friends.

Her love of the beach began while summering at her parents’ cottage on Peconic Bay. Later, Joyce would move back to a waterfront home with a magnificent view of that bay. She loved sharing this view with everyone.

Joyce is survived by her daughters Pam, Jaye, Sherryl, and Sandy; her sons-in law William Jones, William Mahoney, Jr., Wayne Bruyn, and Frank Tortorici; stepchildren Richard Bormuth, Pam Bormuth, and David Bormuth; grandchildren Delaney Jones, Tess Mahoney, Olivia Bruyn, Duke, Frank and Charlie Tortorici, Tim Bormuth (Amy); great grandchildren Kendall, Jax, and Liam Bormuth and nephews Steven Bond (Tiziana) and Henry Bond (Jo). 

In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting donations be made to the First Presbyterian Church of Southampton.