Joan M. Verrilli

Joan M. Verrilli, 86, of Orange, passed away on Sunday, April 19, 2026, at Maplewood at Orange. A beloved wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, dedicated community volunteer, mentor, and friend, she was born in Bridgeport, CT, on March 16, 1940, to the late Ralph and Joan (Czecze) Meyers.

From early on, Joan’s leadership qualities and creative talents were apparent in her love of painting, writing, and theater, as well as in the initiative, warmth, and conviction with which she moved through the world.  Whether as a class officer, yearbook president, writer and editor of the school paper, or playwright/director of many community and University of Bridgeport productions, she had an easy way of including and engaging others, welcoming everyone to the table, and advocating for them in ways as subtle as they were catalyzing.

She studied business at the University of Bridgeport, where she met Ronald J. Verrilli, the young man who began as her accounting tutor and became the love of her life.  They married on November 16, 1962, and shared over 62 years building a life of stability, possibility, and promise. Joan was a devoted and dynamic presence in this mission, determined to enrich the lives of her husband, children, and grandchildren. Attending every performance and practice, cheering from the sidelines, investing long hours in their projects and dreams, and making sure their every accomplishment was celebrated, she enthusiastically cultivated the ‘can-do’ in each of them.

In addition to running Long Island Sound Sailing School with her husband, she was deeply involved in her community, taking on many roles at Booth Hill School, Hillcrest Junior High School, and Trumbull High School, and directing youth theater productions, fundraisers, and PTA events. She also worked as a coach at Nutrisystem in Greenwich, CT, where she became a beloved counselor, inspiring others toward self-appreciation and wellbeing.

Joan had an affinity for making people feel not only seen, but heard; not only encouraged, but singular in their own right. She will be cherished by the many she so tenderly championed. Her formidable generosity of spirit will endure in each of us, evermore.

She was predeceased by her husband, Ronald J. Verrilli, and is survived by her daughters, Susan Verrilli Dutilh of San Francisco, CA, and Elizabeth Verrilli (Gary) Depgen of Shelton, CT; her grandchildren, Jane Depgen of Brooklyn, NY, Jack Depgen of Brooklyn, NY, and Ari Dutilh of San Francisco, CA; and her brother, Lee Meyers of Watertown, CT.

The family would like to thank the dedicated caregivers at Maplewood at Orange and Connecticut Hospice for the compassionate and exceptional care shown to Joan.