Joys joy was sharing Joys joy. On Friday, October 2, 1953 in Wellington, Kansas, Vivian Farnsworth Gassett, delivered a baby girl to her farmer husband, Wendell Gassett. The girl was their third child and named Joy Dalene Gassett. Joy grew up on the family wheat farm near Oxford, Kansas. The Gassett children went to Oxford schools K-12 and connected deeply to their classmates and community. Joy loved school and sports and was an active participant and a vocal spectator. These loves perfectly matched her future interests as a teacher, the wife of a coach and the mom of three excellent student athletes. She became a Christ follower at a young age and kept a daily appointment of Bible reading and prayer each morning before starting her day. She loved her Lord and Savior and spoke of how certain prayers had been answered, carefully thanking the faithfulness of her Lord Jesus. Her faith and devotion showed. She lived with a positive, spiritual expectancy. Joy followed her older siblings collegiate path and headed south to Bethany, Oklahoma where she attended Bethany Nazarene College, now Southern Nazarene University where she would later earn a masters degree in business education. In college, she would meet Phil Brown, a classmate who would become her lifelong teammate. Phil loved the joy she brought to him and instantly saw how well their interests fit together. They were married on Friday May 25, 1973 at Bethany First Church of the Nazarene, a church they would join and at which each of their children would be dedicated to God. Joy was never happier than when her entire family was present worshiping together. Phil and Joy invited Christ to join their marriage and built a Christian marriage that lasted for more than 46 years. Joy taught business education courses in high school while Phil taught American History and coached basketball, including a Boys high school State Championship team. Joy was the perfect support a coach dreams he could have at home. She helped Phil process wins and losses with the same encouraging support always believing Phil and his players were best sometimes reviewing a call from an official sometimes complimenting an exceptional opponent. Both graded a lot of papers. Joys gift of hospitality was particularly helpful to the teams Phil coached when it came time to honor Seniors, have team events and host team parties. After a few years of marriage, Phil and Joy were blessed with their first son, Scott. A few years later, a pregnancy they thought would bring Scott a little brother, surprisingly gave Scott two little brothers. The twins, Taylor and Terry, were different. But Joy seemed unusually able to understand each boy so completely and could respond to each of their needs in ways unique to each of them. Phil and Joy had not just built a Christian marriage, they were building a Christian family. Joys teaching was significant. As a Business/IT teacher, she was the link to technology for students, some of whom came from homes with limited access to technology. It was important to provide access to emerging software services and see that students secured the skills they needed to use technology in whatever career they chose. She served as a state officer for her business/IT teaching peers. She taught in public schools for 32 years, mostly at Bethany High School. She brought joy to the classroom -- the same joy her father saw, her husband loved, and her sons experienced. The joy was individualized and personal. Beyond the long days and nights of being a coachs wife and a sports mom, grading papers and pursuing an important professional career, Joy also built a remarkable reputation for her artistic abilities. She made scrapbooks for players, blankets with team t-shirts, wall plaques for athletic achievements, appliques for gift towels suited to the personal interests of persons for whom she prepared them. She sewed beautiful quilts, pillows, and home decorations. She was a popular booth hostess at craft shows and her scrapbooks were a huge hit at An Affair of the Heart. She knew how to personalize the recognition or story she sought to share and celebrate. Joy treasured each friend and member of her extended family and often bought or made them special gifts, sent them funny cards, or took them out to eat for lunch or dinner on special days. She carefully kept a calendar filled with dates circled for her special friends and family. She was a shopper and giver of unique and clever gifts. When you got a gift from Joy, it fit what she knew you loved. She was generous with her time, money, love, and resources. She was always thinking about friends and how she could encourage each one. Each of the boys grew up, went to college, got married, worked and some began having children. That made Joy a grandmother. Given her enthusiasm for her family and friends, Teddy, Poppy and Cooper became the most fun to encourage. They rightfully jumped immediately to the front of her line. The marriage Phil and Joy built was intertwined with their church, their jobs, the families whose children they taught and coached and their mutual desire to leave the world a better place, person by person. During summer vacations, Phil and Joy took long driving vacations to visit historical sites, enjoy different parts of the country and learn about different communities. After 32 years of teaching, Joy retired in May 2018. Phil and Joy had already visited all 50 states. But they wanted to revisit some of their favorite spots. So, they planned a special post-retirement trip for the Summer, 2019. In late June, they visited Philadelphia. Then, they headed north to Maine. Hours later, on July 1, 2019 in Portland, Maine, she passed away doing what she loved to do most be with Phil, see new sights, and use her keen eyes to find a new craft, a picture, a gift or a word of encouragement. Joys joy was sharing Joys joy. Joy is survived by her husband, Phil R. Brown; their three sons and their wives, Scott and Lauren, Terry and Sarah, and Taylor and Rachel; three grandchildren, Teddy and Poppy through Scott and Lauren, and Cooper through Taylor and Rachel, with a new little one due in February 2020. She is also survived by her sister, Drexell (Dennis) Bergstrom and brother, Danny Gassett. Other survivors include her brother-in-law, Ken (Verna) Brown, sister-in-law, Lou Ann (Homer) Myers; sister-in-law, Jill (Paul) Harvey, and many nieces, nephews and great-nieces and nephews. Joy was preceded in death by her parents, Wendell and Vivian Farnsworth Gassett and by her father-in-law and mother-in-law, Royce Wayne Brown and Patty Bryan Brown. Viewing will be Monday, July 8, 9am-9pm with family present from 6-8pm at Mercer-Adams Funeral Service. Services will be Tuesday, July 9, 10am at Bethany First Nazarene Church with interment in Bethany Cemetery. Visitation with Family Present Mercer-Adams Funeral Service Monday, July 08, 2019 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM 3925 North Asbury Avenue Bethany, Oklahoma 73008 Viewing will be Monday, July 8, 9am-9pm Funeral Service Bethany First Church of the Nazarene Tuesday, July 09, 2019 10:00 AM 6789 N.W. 39th Expressway Bethany, Oklahoma 73008