Royce Leland Beers, 82, of Lake Leelanau passed away listening to Beaver Island hunting stories on April 11, 2026.

Royce was born on July 2, 1943 in Pontiac to the late Leland and Gaynor (Jones) Beers.

After attending Seaholm Birmingham High School (1961), Albion College (1965) and University of Detroit Mercy School of Dentistry (1968), he completed his Oral Maxillofacial Surgery Residency at the University of Michigan (1971). While a resident, he taught anatomy to dental students, many of whom would become lifelong friends. He also met the love of his life Margie, while at the University of Michigan.

Royce and Margie spent the early years of their marriage focused on careers, aviation and travel. They moved to Traverse City in 1976, where he established Grand Traverse Oral Surgery. He was well respected and loved by his patients for his outstanding care and professionalism. From that time until his death, the Monday Dental Lunch Meeting would become a core part of his schedule; soup, salad, talk of teeth, life and fishing filled a table in a local establishment each week. In 1980, they welcomed their son Chad into their family. As a father, Royce showed his love through quality time, mentoring his son in the air, water, woods and eventually even the dental operatory. Royce’s free time was spent running, hunting and fishing. He eventually moved to Leelanau County, where he could access these hobbies from his home and add farming to the list.

Retirement came in 2004. Royce would spend his time flying his beloved Cessna to tend crops in Idaho and on Beaver Island. He turned his passion from oral surgery to apple trees. While the suggestion that this farming was to bring deer to hunt, with time it became clear that Royce was no longer interested in the kill, only the beauty of nature.

Royce was preceded in death by his parents and sisters, Janice Beers Thorne and Lynne Webb.

He is survived by his beloved wife Margie (Greene); their son Chad (Mindy) and grandchildren Leland and Wesley; sister-in-law Sally (Mark) Steward; nephews Kyle (Amelia) Steward DDS and Blake (Alexandra) Steward and many extended family members. He will be missed by many close friends, including Nathan Newman.

Memorial services will be held on Friday, April 17with visitation at 2:00 PM and service at 3:00 PM at Reynolds Jonkhoff Funeral Home. A Celebration of Life will be planned this summer.

Memorial contributions in his honor may be directed to Beaver Island Wildlife Club or Conductive Learning Center of North America. 

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