Joy Anne (Rose) Sniffin

On Wednesday, March 17, 2021, Joy Anne Sniffin, wife, mother, grandmother and great grandmother, passed away peacefully in her sleep at the age of 80. Her last days were spent surrounded by the family that she loved so deeply at her home in Denmark, South Carolina. Joy will be lovingly remembered by her husband and love of her life for 38 years, James L. Sniffin. The two were married in Yosemite National Park, California, on July 30, 1982, a union that would set in motion nearly 4 decades of the most abundant life anyone could ask for.

Mom was born on July 30, 1940, in Hanford, CA, and graduated from Madera High School in 1958. Soon thereafter she moved to Firebaugh, CA, where she had three children, Steven, Cindy, and Andy, from her first marriage to Bob Chandler, to whom she remained friends until the day of her passing.

Mom was a passionate Christian who first came to know the Lord in February, 1962, at the old Assembly of God Church in Firebaugh, California, where she continue to live and help raise her three children for many years. She loved the church, but her relationship with Christ was not theoretical or detached; it was a living and personal relationship where she walked with Him and enjoyed sweet fellowship with Him daily through prayer and Bible study.

She loved her family immensely and wanted more than anything else that they discover the hope and joy of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Mom‘s strongly held view was that it was her role as a parent and grandparent to pass on a godly heritage to the next generation, and she took her assignments seriously. She stayed connected, emotionally engaged, and personally involved in her children’s and grandchildren‘s lives. Mom viewed her role as a grandparent as a God ordained calling to be a spiritual leader and she demonstrated this through her life by her example, but also with stories and personal testimonies of how she came to know God, how great God is, how he has provided and how faithful he has been.

Mom‘s given name, Joy, could not have been more fitting. She had a real zest for life. She possessed a contagious joyfulness and entertaining sense of humor. She had a prudent outlook on life and a down to earth opinion of herself. Throughout her life she maintained a sweet and unpretentious demeanor that won the trust and hearts of so many, who even now are being challenged by her witness and unyielding faith even as her health declined. Her name and divine gift of joy showing through her constant smiling, laughter, and joking around, will never be forgotten.

Mom was a strong woman and mother, but also humble, and tenderhearted. She knew how to face the difficulties of life and did so through her most difficult challenge with confidence and in complete reliance upon her ever-present Lord whom she praised continually even as she battled physically – and never lost her joy or sense of humor.  She left an indelible legacy in the lives of her family. Poi si torno all eterna fontana (Then she returned to her eternal source) - C. S. Lewis

Joy was predeceased by her parents, Johnnie Martin Rose and Faye Bristol (Judd), sisters Pat Brooks, and Linda Erickson. She is survived by her husband James L Sniffin; brothers Bill Coulon, Art Judd, Tim Rose, and sister Dolores Spencer.

She also leaves behind her children, Steve (Michelle) Chandler, Cindy (Brab) McCully, Andy (Tabatha) Chandler; Stefani and Shelli Sniffin. Her greatest treasures were her grandchildren Cory (Sydney) Dantzler, Laurel Brookes, Madeline, and Jesse Ross Chandler.  Dustin (Lindsay) McCully, David (Joslyn) McCully, Lee (Haley) McCully, Miranda McCully, Anthony and Bryce Chandler, Parker and Tanner Vause, and Landon Grooms. Four great grandchildren; Weston James, Riley Kate McCully, Maddox Harrison and Tilly James McCully.

Funeral services will be held at two o’clock p.m., Saturday, March 20, 2021 in the Folk Funeral Home Chapel, Denmark, SC with the Reverend Butch McKenze officiating; burial will be in the Denmark Cemetery. The family will receive friends one hour prior to the service at the funeral home on Saturday. Due to the current pandemic and the CDC regulations, social distancing and other guidelines will be in place; facemasks are requested. The service will be live-streamed on our Official Folk Funeral Home - Live Stream Facebook page for those unable to attend.

Memorial contributions may be sent to Grove Park Hospice, 1324 Grove Park Dr. NE, Orangeburg, SC  29116.

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