Miranda Tonelli

Miranda B. Tonelli was born to Cecilia Pierotti and Peter Tonelli. She left Italy with her parents and her younger sister Ramona in 1930 to move to Chicago, Illinois. She graduated from Immaculata High School on the North Side. Miranda married Louis Tonelli, no relation, in 1946 when he returned from World War II. She is survived by her only child, Richard Tonelli Joan of Shaker Heights, Ohio, two grandchildren, Kaitlin Tonelli and Christopher Tonelli of Cleveland, Ohio, and two great grandchildren, Lilinoe and Conner. She was a loving and devoted mother and grandmother. She is also survived by her sister Florence Leonard DiJohn and her brother Arthur Tonelli, both of Chicago, Illinois. She was preceded in death by her sister Ramona Wambay, her brother Peter Tonelli, Jr., and her stepbrother Eugene Pigoni. She is also survived by ten nieces and nephews. Her husband of 62 years, Louis, passed away in 2007. Miranda and Lou were devoted partners in business as well as in marriage. Miranda was a whiz with numbers, so it was natural that she became responsible for the financial end of their real estate partnership. She always knew the best place to "grow" your money. She was quite the athlete. Miranda played volleyball, basketball, and softball in high school. Even in her 80s it wasn't unusual to see her shooting baskets or playing catch with her grandchildren. It wasn't until she got married that she started water skiing, golfing, fishing, and pheasant hunting with her husband Louis. They went on many hunting and fishing trips. She really enjoyed the outdoors. Miranda had a passion for cooking. Since she was the oldest daughter, it became her responsibility at an early age to take care of her brothers and sisters. She learned a lot about cooking from her mother, but she took it to another level. She was a great cook. Her raviolis were a show stopper. Mir, as she was fondly called by her friends and family, also had a passion for gambling. She enjoyed going to the horse track, the gambling boats around the Chicago area, trips to Las Vegas, and playing poker in numerous card clubs with her many girlfriends. Also, her brothers, sisters, and father would get together on Friday nights for a friendly game of poker. If you played her in rummy, you were destined to lose three out of four games. She was always lucky in games of chance. If you looked up the word "lady" in the dictionary, Miranda's picture would be there. She was kind, generous, and proper. It was unheard of for her to leave the house without a fashionable outfit, polished nails, and her hair in place. Miranda was brought up as a Catholic. When she was a senior at Immaculata High School, she crowned the Blessed Mother. From that point on, Miranda was devoted to the Madonna, and she tried to live her life in a manner that would please the Blessed Mother. In 1995, Mir and Lou moved from Chicago to Cleveland to be near their son, Richard. They bought a house in Aurora, Ohio that overlooked Walden Country Club. They missed their extended family and friends in Chicago, but they loved their new home, the golf course, and being near their grandchildren. When her husband died in 2007, Miranda lived with her son in Shaker Heights. She kept busy during the week at the Senior Center with craft projects, trips to museums and restaurants, bingo, card playing, and socializing. She really enjoyed jigsaw puzzles. It wasn't unheard of for her to work into the wee hours of the morning to complete one of her many 300-500 piece puzzles. Miranda lived life to the fullest. In fact, because of her spunky attitude, her family gave her the nickname of the "energizer bunny". She would have been 90 years old in December. Her zest for life was amazing. In the end, she fought hard to stay alive when she could have easily given up. However, Alzheimer's was too strong of an opponent. Those who wish to make a contribution may make one in her name to The Alzheimer's Association, P. O. Box 74924, Cleveland, Ohio 44194 or The Church of St. Dominic, 19000 Van Aken Blvd., Shaker Heights, Ohio 44122. A Funeral Mass will be held in The Church of St. Dominic, on Saturday, Sept. 3rd at 9:30am. Interment, Lake View Cemetery. FRIENDS MAY CALL AT BROWN-FORWARD, 17022 CHAGRIN BLVD., SHAKER HTS., OH ON FRIDAY, SEPT. 2ND FROM 4-7PM. Visit: http://news.brown-forward.com/notable-obituaries/miranda-bianca-tonelli /


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