Joyce Quamme Mirassou, age 93, passed away peacefully in her sleep on March 25, 2022. She was born July 1, 1928 in San Jose Hospital. She was predeceased by her parents, Theodore and Emma Quamme, and her husband, Don Mirassou. She’ll always be remembered for her sunny smile and engaging personality.
A lifelong resident of Santa Clara Valley, Joyce attended Horace Mann Elementary School and Theodore Rosevelt Junior High School. She graduated from San Jose High School where she was a member of Torch and Laurel Honor Society, worked on the school newspaper in which she had a column “Quamme Quotes” with items about other schools, and was on the yearbook committee. Joyce also attended San Jose State College but chose to put her love of her family ahead of her interest in art.
While in high school, she met her future husband, Don Mirassou, when he stopped by at a family picnic to visit two of his friends, her cousins who lived across the road from him. They married in 1947 and had three children. Don died a few months short of their 66th wedding anniversary in 2013.
Joyce was a multitalented woman. As Don had prune and pear orchards (initially in San Jose and shared with his parents, Eulalie and John A. (Jack) Mirassou), she became the bookkeeper for Mirassou Orchards until Don died. When they sold the San Jose orchards in the mid 1960s, they bought a prune orchard in Morgan Hill, continuing the Mirassou family tradition of over 150 years. To fit an open area that was not planted with prunes, she designed and contracted their house which she decorated beautifully. It was the location of many warm gatherings with family and friends. Later in life, she enjoyed painting with watercolor.
Of note, Don’s great grandfather, Pierre Pellier and his brother Louis Pellier, brought cuttings of the petite d’Agen prune to San Jose in the 1850s. A prune is a very sweet plum variety that will dry without fermenting. These were the very first prune trees in Santa Clara Valley, the Valley of Hearts’ Delight. Joyce’s family were also orchardists in Santa Clara Valley so agriculture was familiar to her despite having grown up in the City of San Jose.
Don and Joyce enjoyed many clubs together. They square danced with the Squares and Flares in Morgan Hill. As Don had an active interest in antique automobiles. they belonged to several antique auto clubs: Valle Del Sur Car Club of Morgan Hill, Salinas Valley Antique Auto Club and San Jose Model T Club. She coordinated outfits appropriate for the vintages of their cars and was always stylishly dressed for their tours. For many years she wrote and published the Bulbhorn Bulletin, the journal of the Salinas Valley Antique Auto Club, winning awards for her publishing work.
She was a devout Roman Catholic who participated actively in their parish community. She taught religious education when their children were young and, later in life, became a Eucharistic Minister at Saint Catherine of Alexandria Parish in Morgan Hill.
She is survived by her children and grandchildren who were very important to her: Marlene Mirassou, MD (Steve Houlihan), Cheryl Battiato (Joe Battiato), and John Mirassou (Sandra Pomeroy). Her 3 grandchildren and one step-grandson are: Jean Battiato (Chad Peterman), Michael Battiato, Scotty Houlihan, and Edward Mirassou. We all love her very much and miss her.
A Visitation will be held Wednesday, April 20, 2022 at Lima Family Santa Clara Mortuary, 466 N. Winchester Boulevard, Santa Clara, CA 95050 from 5pm to 8:30 pm with Rosary at 7 pm. A Funeral Mass will be Thursday, April 21, 2022 at 11 am at St. Martin of Tours Church, 200 O’Connor Drive, San Jose, CA, 95128. Burial will follow at Santa Clara Mission Cemetery, 490 Lincoln Street, Santa Clara, CA 95050.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.limafamilysantaclara.com for the MIRASSOU family.
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