Pat Michael Iurilli

Pat Michael Iurilli, age 65, died peacefully at home on November 20, 2021.

Born in the Bronx, New York, in 1956, Pat went blind in his 20s and met his wife of 40 years at a guide dog school on Long Island. They moved to Highland Park, New Jersey, where he worked for 25 years as a software engineer at Bell Labs and its successors in nearby Piscataway.

For decades Pat collected Lionel toy trains, postage stamps, coins and currency, and he operated a small store selling collectibles in Edison, New Jersey, for several years. He owned numerous classic cars and motorcycles both before and after losing his sight. He was also a lifelong fan of the New York Yankees, attending Old Timers’ Day at Yankee Stadium whenever he could and rarely missing a game on the radio.

Pat was active in his local church for many years, at times serving as both a Deacon and an Elder. Speaking about his blindness, he liked to quote 2 Corinthians 5:7, saying he “walked by faith, not by sight.”

Pat is survived by his wife Patricia, known to friends as Trina; children Michael (and wife Carrie), Arthur (and wife Megan), Kathryn, Richard and Roseanne; grandchildren Theodore and Zachary; mother Christine; sisters Maria, Joanne, Carole and Victoria; and 20 nieces and nephews.

The funeral will be held at Mt. Carmel Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Somerset, New Jersey, on Tuesday, November 23, at 9 AM, followed by interment at Clover Leaf Memorial Park in Woodbridge, New Jersey.

IN LIEU OF FLOWERS, please consider a donation to Build a Shoebox (https://www.samaritanspurse.org/operation-christmas-child/buildonline/) in support of one of Pat’s favorite ministries, Operation Christmas Child by Samaritan’s Purse.

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