Joy F. Patterson

Joy Patterson (b. 1931) was born in Lansing, Michigan, and raised in LaGrange, Illinois. She holds a B.A. in French Studies and an M.A. in French Literature, both from the University of Wisconsin. A Fulbright scholar, she has taught French at the college level and worked for the Social Security Administration. She writes both texts and tunes, and her concerns as a hymn writer are for the unity and inclusiveness of the church, peace, justice, and the stewardship of the earth. A resident of Wausau, Wisconsin, she is an elder of the Presbyterian Church (USA) and has been active on the local, presbytery, and national levels.