CHICOPEE - Priscilla B. (Beaulieu) Irion, 93, a longtime resident of the Fairview section of Chicopee, was Called Safely Home on Thursday, August 17, 2017 at the Soldiers' Home in Holyoke. She was born and raised in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, the fourth of six children and graduated from Fitchburg High School. She enlisted in the United States Navy and served with the WAVES during World War II and attained the rank of Storekeeper Third Class. While serving with the Navy, she met the love of her life, her husband Roland. She was employed at Ludlow Packaging and retired in 1986 as an Inventory Control Supervisor. She previously worked at F.W. Sickles in Chicopee. She was a communicant of Saint Anne Church in Chicopee. She enjoyed life to the fullest and will always be remembered for her incredible math abilities, sense of humor and fantastic cooking. She relished the competition of a good card game and could often be found at the South Hadley Senior Center playing cribbage. Whether by land, sea or air, Priscilla enjoyed traveling. She visited many states and countries throughout her life and was always ready for a "Road Trip"! She inspired this love of adventure in her four daughters and many of her grandchildren share her same passion. Above all, she loved spending time with her family and her many dear friends. Her family would like to thank the entire staff of the Soldiers' Home in Holyoke for their dedicated and compassionate care of Priscilla while she was with them. She was predeceased by her beloved husband and best friend, Roland Irion. They were married on January 12, 1946 and were blessed with over 54 years of happiness together. She leaves her four loving daughters, Barbara Williams and her husband, Richard, of Oneida, NY, Francesca Hoffner and her husband, Charles, and Roxanne Asselin, all of Chicopee, and Rhonda Lapierre and her husband, Edmond, of Berlin, CT; her twelve cherished grandchildren; her fifteen cherished great-grandchildren; and her dear youngest sister, Rachel Foss of Ashburnham, MA. Her Funeral will be held on Tuesday morning, August 22, 2017 beginning at the St. Pierre - Phaneuf Fairview Chapels, (413-533-3307), 506 Britton Street, Chicopee, MA 01020, (funeral home will open at 8:30 a.m.), followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 10:30 a.m. at Saint Anne Church, 30 College Street, Chicopee, MA 01020. Her Committal Service with United States Navy Military Honors will be private at the convenience of her family at Saint Patrick Cemetery in Chicopee. Her family will receive friends at the funeral home on Tuesday morning, August 22, 2017 from 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. prior to the Mass. The parking lot is located at the rear of the funeral home. For those who prefer, her family requests that memorial donations be made in her memory to the Friends of the Soldiers' Home in Holyoke, Inc., PO Box 1338, Holyoke, MA 01041. For more details, please visit: www.stpierrephaneuf.com
