Joseph Robert Broyles

Joseph Robert Broyles, 30, born on April 20, 1983, in Stockton, California, passed away July 20, 2013. He resided in Los Angeles, California at the time of his passing.

Joseph was the son of Joseph L. Broyles (deceased) and Laurel Jump and is survived by his mother and a brother, Jared. Since he was a young boy, he considered Ron Combs his "dad."

He graduated from Crescenta Valley High School and attended classes at Pasadena Community College, LA Trade Tech, and North Valley Occupation Center Aviation Department.

In high school, Joseph worked the obligatory fast food stint with Taco Bell, but quickly decided he preferred to work for coffee shops and worked for Starbucks, Higley's and the Equator. He worked a number of jobs through a temp agency working on "Tony Hawk THUG 2" for Activision Software, a sales associate for Pier 1 Imports, a mailroom clerk for Bank of the West, and driver for Yummy Foods delivery. Joseph worked as a Fleet Service Agent for America West, where he gained his love of flying and decided to pursue a pilot's license in his spare time. After he gained his guard card, he worked for Paramount Security and Descanso Gardens events.

He did a short stint as an exempt clerk typist for the City and decided a job in Civil Service was appealing as a career. He most recently worked for the City of Los Angeles for seven years as a Maintenance Laborer for the Department of Public Works in the Bureau of Sanitation, where he worked in the Instrument Shop and Storm Water Division, and then with the Bureau of Street Services where he worked in Resurfacing and Reconstruction and was proficient in performing not only the manual labor of repairing and construction of City streets but operating the heavy equipment used for street grinding and paving.

Joseph looked forward to spending holidays with his family, particularly Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve at his "Oma's" home in Hesperia. Halloween was all about being with his friends.

He had a great time meeting his aunts, uncles and cousins in Texas not long ago.

Joseph's friends describe him as a "goof." He had a great time hanging out with his friends, especially his roomies: Ashish and Andre. They just had to document when he shaved his head! Those crazy pictures are included in his video.

He liked playing video games, but would get pretty mad when the game didn't go the way he wanted. His family, friends and roommates can attest that more than one controller or laptop computer ended its service against a wall as a result of his frustration. His brother recalled one time when he became so aggravated, he threw the controller on the ground, it bounced and he ninja-kicked it into the wall. They then busted up laughing.

He was an avid reader and a self-taught guitarist. He loved playing his guitar, watching movies, flying small planes, riding his Honda Nighthawk or Harley V-Rod motorcycles or driving with the top down on his car.

Joseph was a member of Demolay International in high school, doing charitable works through that organization. He became an ordained minister of the Universal Life Church, a non-denominational church, and officiated at a number of weddings. He said he didn't charge for his services, because he figured the people he was uniting would have enough to deal with, and he didn't want to add to the burden.

Joseph was born with animal magnetism. The family dogs seemed to recognize that Joseph was a kindred spirit. When he was born, our Doberman, Chris, was so protective of him; he wouldn't let anyone near him, including Grandma Broyles, which aggravated her to no end. Chris couldn't stand for his baby to be upset and would slip him dog food bits and even apolitically took a piece of tensile from the Christmas tree and gave it to him, when Joseph clearly wanted some, and it was placed out his reach. The family had a number of pets throughout the years, but most recently, Saffy, Jared's miniature pincer, would follow him everywhere with her ball for him to toss. She harassed and plagued him even waiting outside the bathroom door for him, ignoring everyone else, preferring Joseph to toss her ball for her. Charlie, his mom's Yorkshire Terrier was surely fond of Joseph, so much so that one day, when Charlie was a bit amorous with his arm, he yelled at his mother and said, "Mom, your dog is molesting me!" He always seemed to find the funny in a situation.

Joseph had an adventurous spirit, and when given the opportunity, went on a fossil dig with a friend, Ryan Horton, where they unearthed and preserved a portion of a wooly mammoth from a cliff-side in Baja, Mexico.

Joseph enjoyed whitewater rafting with his family and friends on the American River, but his favorite vacation spot was the island of Kauai in Hawaii,

Joseph was generous and kind-hearted and always willing to help others in need, even to his own detriment. He would literally give someone the shirt off his own back.

Joseph was a beloved son, brother, grandson, nephew, cousin, roommate, friend, co-worker, student and teacher. His life was too short, and he will be missed!

Joseph was laid to rest in a private ceremony on Friday, November 15, 2013.