September 7 1930 November 20 2022
Jacqueline “Jackie” James Tirrell, age 92, passed away peacefully in her sleep on Sunday, November 20, 2022. She was preceded in death by her parents, Robert James and Catherine Basler James; Husband Thomas A Tirrell Jr., Son Robert M. Tirrell, mother-in-law Lucille Miller;father-in-law Thomas A. Tirrell Sr.., her sisters Gloria Wilson and Sue Tippin; Brother in-law Douglas Tirrell, and Sister in-law Joann Buck.. She is survived by her son, Thomas A. Tirrell III and his wife Jane Clark (JC) of Charlottesville, her daughter, Kim T. Vanderploeg and husband Mac, of Gordonsvillle, Va., sisters Jo Reid (Tom)and Kay Langston of Huntsville, Al; her daughter-in-law Bonnie Tirrell of Ruckersville, Va; her daughter-in-law Leslie Tirrell Womack (Dennis) of Charlottesville, Va; Brother in-law James Tirrell (Rosalind) of Palmyra, Va., Sister in-law Faye Lawson (George) of Charlottesville, Va.,, Sister in-law Ruth Greene of Smith Mt. Lake, Va. and her eight grandchildren Gretchen Wood (Brook), Jessica Hutchinson Wiley (Andrew), Thomas Tirrell IV (Amy), John Tirrell (Carrie), Courtney Goodnight (Jay), and Meredith Brown; Jill Meriweather (Matt), Kaitie Chance (Josh) and her 16, great-grandchildren T-Mac, Truitt, Drew, Noah, Grant, Thomas, Linden, Josiah, Ezra, Lenix, Amaya, Cadence, Jimmy, Virginia, Violet, and Braelynn. She is also survived by special friend Catherine L. Peters, Her “friendkids”, many nieces ,nephews and friends as well as her granddogs, and grandcats. Born September 7, 1930, in St.Genevieve Missouri, she spent her formative years in Maracaibo Venezuela where her love for travel and adventure first began to blossom. Though she lived there for less than ten years, the jungle of Venezuela held a very special part of her heart captive as she relished in the retelling of stories from her time there and often daydreamed about going back. During WWII, her family moved from South America back to the states to Charlottesville Virginia where Jackie attended Lane High School and met her husband Tom Tirrell, as well as her best friends Jean Easton, Catherine Lane Peters, Betty Glass Paine, and Loretta Townsend, whom she remained very close to throughout her life. For years the five of them would get together and play poker and share many laughs. In 1951 she married Tom and they settled in Charlottesville near the airport where Jackie raised their three kids and worked as the office manager for 26 years for Haley, Chisholm, & Morris. Upon retirement, she found a passion for teaching as an instructional aid at Stony Point Elementary School, where she worked for a number of years. She loved art and painted and drew often, encouraging the same in the children she taught. She remained in Charlottesville until 2001 when she moved to Keswick with her daughter and son-in-law. Later in life she followed her wanderlust and visited multiple countries in Europe, Central America, and the Caribbean with family. Seeing the world, learning the language, and talking to people native to where she visited was powerfully inspiring and uplifting to her. She also was a die-hard sports fan and loyal Virginia Cavalier supporter, attending countless football, baseball, and basketball games throughout her life. Jackie never met a stranger and often insisted that people she met call her “Grandma.” She was also known as “Friendma” by her best friend’s children. She was always eager to give a hug to everyone she met, and equally as eager to share a joke. No matter what your name was, she called everyone Honey. She touched so many during her 92 years. She was a rare gem on this earth, a true southern lady. She will certainly be missed by so many. We love you Grandma! A special Thank You to Rosey Yowell for being Grandma’s special sidekick for her last few years. And Dr. Lauren and nurse Victoria of the Hospice of the Piedmont for their gentle care and endless support over the last few months. We can’t thank you enough! The family plans to hold a Celebration of Life on December 19th at Orchard Creek in Waynesboro, Va from 10-2. We invite friends and family to attend and to share a memory of your time with Grandma. In lieu of flowers, Grandma would have loved for monetary donations to be made in her memory to the Charlottesville-Albemarle SPCA or to the Hospice of the Piedmont.
Our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of Jacqueline Jackie James Tirrell September 7 1930 November 20 2022.
Death notice for the town of: Charlottesville, state: Virginia