Dr. George H. Boyce

Dr. George H. Boyce, Jr, 97, of Iron Mountain, formerly of Kingsford, passed away on Sunday, December 6, 2015 at St. Vincent's Hospital in Green Bay, Wisconsin. He was born on August 21, 1918 in Iron Mountain. Dr. Boyce was the son of the late George H. Boyce, Sr., an eye, ear, nose and throat specialist. His mother, Esther (Stavrum) Boyce, was a high school teacher of Latin and German. His childhood spanned the years of Prohibition and the Great Depression. He attended Iron Mountain High School where he was on the football team and played in the band. Following graduation in 1936 he went off to college, earning undergraduate and medical degrees from the University of Michigan. Classes in medical school were accelerated because of the need for doctors in World War II. Students were inducted as privates first class and exempted from further military service until after internship. Dr. Boyce served his internship at the University of Chicago Clinics, then re¬-entered the army as a first lieutenant, later promoted to captain. He was assigned to training camps in Pennsylvania and Texas, then sent to Europe in a medical clearing company. While in Belgium in May of 1945 the war with Germany ended. Subsequently, he was one of five hundred thousand troops in a staging area near Marseilles, France, awaiting transfer to the Pacific Theatre. Travel plans were suddenly changed after the dropping of atomic bombs shortened the war with Japan. Following military service he was given an opportunity to practice medicine in Newberry, Michigan, where he delivered many babies, and performed various surgeries. Seeking further medical training he served medical residencies in Ann Arbor, Michigan, South Bend, Indiana, and Camden, New Jersey. In addition, he completed schooling at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Medicine. Returning home to Iron Mountain, he accepted a "temporary" job at the Veterans Administration Hospital, and ended up remaining there for thirty two years. He became director of the early hemodialysis unit and was honored to become the first employee to receive the "Hearts and Hands" award. In 1954 he married Gloria Bolognesi at St. Mary and St. Joseph Church. George and Gloria traveled to Europe, visiting the homelands of their ancestors in Norway and Italy. They explored interesting sites in the Upper Peninsula and other parts of the country. At home they shared an interest in vegetable and flower gardening, and hiking in the woods. Through age 96, he attended the home games for the Kingsford Flivvers football and basketball teams, and cheered on the Michigan Wolverines and Green Bay Packers. George always loved the outdoors. As a teenager, he hunted snowshoe rabbits with his neighborhood friends. Later in life, he enjoyed trout fishing, grouse hunting and eventually deer hunting. He also resumed golfing, which he had given up during his working years. He was an avid cross-country skier even into his nineties. Two of George's greatest joys were providing the Kingsford High School Boyce Scholarship, and being a loving witnesses of the development and activities of his children and grandchildren. Dr. Boyce was a lifelong member of Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, and served the church in several capacities, including planting the flower bed in front of the church. Dr. George H. Boyce, Jr. is survived by his loving wife, Gloria Boyce of Iron Mountain; his sons, John (Michelle) Boyce of Sunland, CA, James Boyce of Everett, WA, and Thomas (Kathi) Boyce of Rochester, MN; a daughter, Elizabeth "Tina" (Robert) Dillman of Lake Geneva, WI; grandchildren, Tom, Sam, Mark and Maria Dillman; Geena and Christina Boyce; Natalie, Timothy, Margaret and George Boyce; and Ryan Hang; and his good friend, Jim Youngell of Commonwealth. He is further survived by many loving nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by three infant children, and his two sisters, Margaret Ryder and Mary Johnston. The visitation is scheduled for Saturday, December 12, 2015 from 9:00 am to 10:45 am at the Erickson-Rochon and Nash Funeral Home in Iron Mountain. The Funeral Service will follow at 11:00 am at the Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Iron Mountain. Rev. David Johnson will officiate. Burial will be in the Iron Mountain Cemetery Park. In lieu of flowers, a memorial will be established in his memory at the Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, or to the Kingsford High School Boyce Scholarship Fund. Condolences to the family of Dr. George H. Boyce, Jr. may be expressed online at www.ernashfuneralhomes.com The family has entrusted the Erickson-Rochon and Nash Funeral Home of Iron Mountain with the funeral arrangements.

Dr. George H. Boyce

August 21, 1918 - December 6, 2015