Moeller Funeral Home 104 Roosevelt Road Valparaiso, IN  46383 (219) 462-0535

Kosanke Funeral Home 105 East Indiana Avenue Kouts, IN  46347 (219) 766-2224

Wanatah Funeral Chapel 309 North Main Street Wanatah, IN  46390 (219) 733-2313

Angelcrest Cemetery and Mausoleum Highway 49 and 600 North Valparaiso, IN  46383 (219) 531-8690

Joe Irelan, 78, died November 18, 2020 after a battle with COVID.   He was born in Centerville, Iowa to Clarence Emery Irelan and Grace Mabel Kingery on 30 June 1942. Joe was the youngest of seven.  Joe and his family relocated to Indiana, where he grew up. In his youth, he enjoyed playing basketball. His teachers described him as a good student, but one who often distracted the other students by talking too much. A trait he was known for throughout his whole life.  In December of 1962, Joe entered the Air Force. After he was honorably discharged in December 1968, Joe moved back to Indiana and began working at Bethlehem Steel, eventually becoming a Safety Engineer. Joe met and married Winifred Bartok in May of 1967. The couple had their only child in October 1970, Erika Irelan. Eventually the couple separated.  In the late 1970s, Joe met Betty Jean Poisel. Joe would often talk about how he knew from the first time he saw Betty he wanted to marry her. Betty was at first reluctant to go on a date with Joe, but he won her over with his charm. Joe and Betty married April 10, 1982. They loved to travel, ride his motorcycle and spend time with their children and grandchildren.  Joe loved gardening, woodworking and homemade pies. He was always laughing and telling stories. Sometimes the same story he told you the day before.  Joe is survived by his siblings Sylvia Arlene Jarvis, Edna Ruth Arndt and Glenn Sherman Irelan; daughter, Erika Irelan; 2 stepchildren and their spouses, Lyn and John Gant, Mark and Jamie Fox; nieces and nephews; 7 grandchildren; and 8 great-grandchildren.  He was preceded in death by his loving wife, Betty Jean Irelan; his sister Eva Mae Wright; his brothers Carl Edwin Irelan and Max Burdette Irelan.
The funeral will be held at Graceland Cemetery on Saturday, November 21 at 11:00am for immediate family only with a memorial at a later date. The service will be streamed online at: https://meet.google.com/hfq-ifwo-efc. The family asks that donations are made in honor of Joe to the Begin Again Rescue Co in Valparaiso, Indiana, as he was a life-long lover of animals.