Joyce Campbell Gooden

Joyce Gooden, 93, passed away in the early morning hours of Saturday, November 29, 2025, almost exactly 25 years after the passing of her beloved husband, Stuart Gooden. The two of them loved watching the sun rise together, especially on summer mornings at their White Lake cottage. 

Born in Whiteville, NC, on September 2, 1932, Joyce Marie Campbell Gooden was the fifth child of eight of John C. and Thara Biggs Campbell. As the “top of the bottom half,” Joyce was spirited and fiercely protective of her younger siblings, earning her the nickname “Bess” from her loving older brothers after a grumpy old aunt. Joyce’s childhood was spread across North and South Carolina, Georgia, Texas and Pennsylvania. When she was a high school sophomore, she moved to Elizabethtown to live with her uncle and aunt, Heyward and Retha Campbell, where she was immediately popular. She was an outstanding athlete, smart, fun and pretty. With the help of her “campaign manager” and future mayor Bill Keith, she won the crown of Homecoming Queen. She was also named the Most Valuable Player in the Star News Women's Basketball Championship game in a year when her team won every game except one when she was sick. She and good friend Hunter Cole won the senior superlative for “Most Likely to Succeed.” About a month after graduation, her true love, Stuart Gooden, showed up at Joyce’s door and swept her away to marry her before he entered the Corps of Engineers at Ft. Belvoir, VA. By the following summer, they had their first child, Susie. When Stuart completed his military commitment, they moved back to NC to Greensboro where they had their second child, Tom. Soon afterwards, they moved home to Elizabethtown where they had their third child, Donna, and lived the remainder of their lives.

After they moved home, Joyce and Stuart became active members of Wesley's Chapel, the church of his boyhood. They were true Christians with unwavering faith and they lived their lives as a beautiful testament to God’s love. Joyce worked as a bookkeeper for several years but eventually enrolled in college, a rare thing for women of her generation. As a school counselor, she had a great impact on the children of Bladen County, many of whom remember her as someone who listened to them, who knew them, and who carried them in her heart. Throughout her life, she continued to stay close to family. She opened her home to family at Thanksgiving and other holidays and often hosted out-of-state family at the White Lake cottage. She took her own family to spend a week with Campbell cousins each summer for years, where her children grew up knowing their family and family history. Together with her siblings and others, Joyce helped revitalize Old Ebenezer Church in Latta, SC, where her father had grown up. Both of her parents and five of her siblings are buried in the Old Ebenezer Church Cemetery and family members continue to have reunions there to this day. Joyce retired in 1999, but even in retirement, Joyce remained active, serving in numerous leadership positions. She wrote grants as secretary for Habitat. She served as DAR Regent more than once. She served as Chair of the Wesley's Chapel Administrative Board. She served on the Hospital Foundation Board. And she was an active member of the Bladen Parish Nursing program, exercising and participating in educational and social events. She even traveled to Europe with friends from Bladen Community College and later returned to Scotland for a Bible study with her sister Thara Ann. Born with a loving spirit and a keen sense of humor, Joyce touched the lives of everyone she met. She was known for her generosity, always willing to lend a helping hand or offer an enlightening word to those in need. Her home was a place of gathering, filled with laughter, delicious meals, and cherished memories. Throughout her life, Joyce was admired for her resilience and strength. She faced life's challenges with grace, finding hope and light even in difficult times. Her wisdom and guidance were a steady presence for her loved ones, and her nurturing soul created a lasting impact on all who knew her. Joyce was predeceased by her parents, her loving husband, Stuart Gooden, her first grandchild, Johnny Prevette, her brothers Wade Campbell, Don Campbell, Johnny Campbell and Fred Campbell, her sisters Barbara Noon and Mary Ruth Youngblood, plus numerous beloved brothers and sisters-in-law, aunts and uncles, cousins and nephews and nieces.

The family will receive friends on Wednesday, December 3, 2025 from 6:00pm until 8:00pm at Bladen Gaskins Funeral Home. A Celebration of Life Service will be held on Thursday, December 4, 2025 at 11:00am at Wesleys Chapel Church.

She is survived by her loving children Susie Gooden Prevette, Tom Gooden and wife Sharon, Donna Gooden Payne and husband Mark, her grandchildren Joyce Prevette Brafford and Jonathon David Gooden, her granddaughter-in-law, Stacey Prevette, her great grandchildren Harper Rae Brafford and Mark Joseph Higgs, her sister Thara Ann Watson, plus many loving cousins, nephews and nieces.

We extend a special thank you to the staff at the Carolina Inn at Village Green who offered exceptional, compassionate care for our Mom over the past year. We also thank Sharon Baxley for the many loving hours she sat with her. In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation in the memory of Joyce Gooden to Wesleys Chapel Church, 2409 Peanut Plant Rd., Elizabethtown, NC 28337 or Old Ebenezer Church, PO Box 400, Marion, SC 29571. 

Whenever you think of Joyce, picture her sitting with her beloved Stuart watching the sun rise, smiling adoringly at their grandson and laughing out loud as her brothers call her “Bess.” Well done, good and faithful servant.