Joyce Marlene Tirella passed away on the morning of July 17, 2026, according to an obituary published on Legacy.com. She was living in St. George, Utah, at the time of her death.
Born on June 5, 1939, in Dennison, Ohio, Tirella grew up on a family farm near Cadiz. She was an honors graduate of Freeport High School in Ohio, where she was active as a majorette and in various school plays.
After graduating, she moved to Orlando, Florida, where she worked a clerical job at Lockheed Martin. In July 1960, she married Louis Tirella. The couple traveled across the country in an Air Stream trailer, with a stop in Honeyville, Utah, in 1961. They eventually settled in Las Vegas, Nevada, where they lived for several decades.
During her time in Las Vegas, Tirella worked as a distributor for Baum Toys and Koscot beauty products, wrote a biography, and ran for a position on the school board. She later spent nearly 30 years working for the Clark County School District, holding various clerical and managerial positions. After retiring, she worked part-time for NU Equipment and traveled extensively via cruise liner to locations such as Alaska and the eastern United States.
In 2020, Tirella moved to the Pacific Northwest before relocating to St. George, Utah, to be closer to the desert heat she preferred. In her later years, she was a resident of an assisted living facility and was known as an avid reader across many genres.
Tirella is survived by her daughters, Lisa Schmidt and Julia Frehner. She also leaves behind eight grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren.
Funeral services were provided by the McArthur Funeral Home & Cremation Center in St. George.
