Joseph Pillsbury

Our son, brother, uncle, cousin, and friend, Joseph Todd Pillsbury, died on December 28, 2025. He leaves us grieving a life cut short by cancer, but grateful that only a few days lapsed between his diagnosis and his passing. We are constantly reminding each other that Joe is among the lucky few who get to live their dream.

Joe was born on November 20, 1963 to Bernice (Hossalla) Pillsbury and the late Robert D. Pillsbury in Duluth, MN. His childhood memories and adventures were captured in one of his books, The Prank, a coming-of-age adventure that features life in the Lakeside-Lester Park neighborhood. With the exceptional education Joe received at Duluth East High School, he skipped college and embarked on a life in the entertainment industry. He worked at the Science Museum of Minnesota where he was trained as an IMAX projectionist. Joe always stayed current on cutting-edge technologies and eventually worked for Apple in the Rosedale Center. When he was laid off from Apple during the pandemic, he could never have imagined that turn of fate would lead to his dream job. While none of us remembers when Joe went to Disney the first time, he asserted in an email following his first round of interviews with Walt Disney World that “Disney has always been the goal from my first visit in the parks and nearly every professional choice I have made along the way has been ‘would this help me someday get a role in Disney?’” By magic or stroke of luck, Joe had left his name with Disney on one of his frequent visits to Florida. When Disney started hiring after pandemic restrictions eased, he was invited for an interview that eventually led to a job offer and a move to Florida.

For the past four years Joe has lived in Florida, made countless friends, learned new skills, helped park guests create beautiful memories, and repeated often how much he loves his job. Even on days off Joe would go to Walt Disney World just to be a guest in the parks and take pictures!

Joe was a dedicated employee wherever he worked, but outside of work he nurtured and refined his artistic and musical skills. For many years he has had an online comic strip https://www.bogworld.com/ where he captured vignettes of his life and of current events. And, he continued to play the electric bass through his adult life. As frequently as he could, he would travel to Duluth to visit family and friends, going on fishing trips when he could.

Joe is survived by his mother, Bernice Pillsbury (Duluth); brother, Bob Pillsbury and spouse (Samara Hamzé) of Oshkosh, WI; sister, Susan Pillsbury-Barton and spouse (Buzz Barton) of Escondido, CA; nephew, Seamus Pillsbury and spouse (Parker Blau) of Sun Prairie, WI; niece, Mina Pillsbury of Eau Claire, WI; many cousins and countless friends in Minnesota, Florida, and around the globe.

A mass celebrating the life of Joe will be held at a later date in Duluth, MN.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Duluth East High School Foundation in memory of Joseph Pillsbury - https://bit.ly/joepillsbury