Irene (Morrissey) Palmer born October 19, 1942 in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania passed away peacefully on June 29, 2026 at Toledo Hospital with her husband, Bill; daughter, Megan and son-in-law, David by her side.
Irene was born the 6th of 13 children to the late Gerard and Florence (Helfrich) Morrissey. She graduated from St. Mary’s High School in 1960 and, following in the footsteps of her two older sisters, achieved a degree from The Mercy Hospital School of Nursing in 1963. She began her career at Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn, NY.
In 1965 she moved to Toledo to follow her heart and continued her nursing career at St. Vincent Medical Center, where she fell in love with Labor and Delivery.
Bill and Irene were married on June 18, 1966 at St Patrick’s Church back in Wilkes -Barre. In July 1967, they welcomed their first born, John, followed by Megan, Gary and David.
After Gary was born, she decided to hang up her stethoscope to be a stay-at-home mom. However, she really missed being a nurse; so, in 1978, she found the perfect fit that combined her love of being a mom and a nurse at Gesu Catholic School in Toledo. One of her favorite joys was being able to spend the morning drive with her son David, who attended Gesu as well. She formed great friendships with the teachers and the students loved her. Being a school nurse, she was able to attend all her children’s sporting events, be a Girl Scout chaperone, have summers and all major holidays off. Her favorite part of winter- SNOW DAYS.
In order to keep up with the requirements for her specific nursing title an advanced degree was needed. She attended night classes twice a week at the University of Toledo and she graduated Magna Cum Laude in 1987 with a Bachelor’s Degree in both Nursing and Education.
Summer breaks meant many vacations with the family creating memories. Two weeks out of every summer were spent back in Wilkes-Barre and two weeks were spent camping up to Clear Lake, MI.
The weekends in the fall; college football. Win or lose, she loved watching her Irish. And every Sunday the kids took turns calling her parents, so they could fill them in on all the exciting things going on in the Palmer household.
In 1999, Irene decided to join Bill in the land of retirement. However, retirement wasn’t meant to last and more fun was to be had. She got a job working as a Suite Attendant/ bartender for the Toledo Mudhens / Toledo Walleye. She loved the exciting atmosphere of the stadium and the suites. Retirement called again after a few seasons, so she hung up her uniform and retired.
In her golden years, Irene took many travel excursions with her travelling sidekicks to Ireland, New Zealand, Australia, Switzerland, Europe, an Alaskan cruise, and visited many states to see family and make new friends.
Her famous London Broil, Chocolate cake, blueberry pie and strawberry jam were enjoyed by many. Her love for cooking and gardening will be greatly missed.
She is survived by her loving husband of 60 years, Bill; daughter, Megan (David) Avalos and son, Gary (Emily); sisters, Ellen and Gert (Lew) Pryor.
In addition to her parent’s, Irene was preceded in death by her siblings, John, MaryAnn, RoseMary, Gerard Jr., Christine, Michael, Bobby, Tommy, Kathleen, and Joseph. She will be welcomed into Heaven by two of her greatest joys; her sons, David, who died tragically in 1989, and John, who died 2020.
A memorial gathering will be held on Monday, July 27, 2026 in Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Catholic Church 8330 Lewis Ave., Temperance, MI from 10:00 a.m. until the time of the funeral mass at 11:00 a.m. Cremation has taken place. Irene’s cremated remains will be interred at Calvary Catholic Cemetery Toledo, OH. Funeral arrangements entrusted to the Urbanski’s Bedford Funeral Chapel 8300 Lewis Ave., Temperance, MI. Online condolences may be shared at www.bedfordfuneralchapel.com
