Joan (Malinowski) DiSalle

Joan DiSalle, 92, late of McMurray, passed away peacefully on Thursday, September 21, 2023, with members of her loving family by her side.

She was born to the late John and Regina Lauritis Malinowski on September 8, 1931, in Mahanoy City, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, one of nine children.

Joan graduated in 1953 from Duquesne University, where she starred in 7 plays with the Red Masquers Theatre Troupe and was crowned “May Queen” by bandleader Woody Herman.  She went on to Graduate study in drama at the Catholic University of America, where she starred in 3 productions.  She taught elementary education at Silver Spring, MD and at St. Bernard’s Academy in Mt. Lebanon.  During her time at Duquesne, while visiting her sister Eleanor, who was then a nurse at Canonsburg Hospital, Joan met her future husband, Richard DiSalle.  The couple were married on January 7, 1956, remained together for 64 years until Richard’s passing on February 16, 2020, and raised six children.

Joan was a voracious reader of classic literature and history, and she and her husband Richard were devoted patrons of the Arts. They generously supported the Pittsburgh Symphony, Ballet, and Opera, as well as the Washington Symphony Orchestra, and other Arts organizations.  Joan was a founding member and past president of Symphony South, a non-profit auxiliary of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.

In 2010, Joan and Richard established the DiSalle Music Fund with the Washington County Community Foundation, endowed to support music education and the Washington Symphony Orchestra.

Joan is survived by her children: Elizabeth DiSalle of McMurray, Francis (Linda) DiSalle of Upper St. Clair, John (Diane) DiSalle of McMurray, Robert (Zanita) DiSalle of Oakville, Ontario, Joseph DiSalle of New York, NY, and Michael (Lynn) DiSalle of Rochester, NY. Also surviving are her brother Daniel (Maura McDowell) Malinowski of Allison Park, and Jack (Debbie Frazer) Malinowski of Philadelphia; seven grandchildren: Brian, Jonathan (Lauren Pearlman), Emily (Eli Obus), Stephen (Jill Steier), Christopher, Sofia, and William DiSalle; great grandchildren: Josiah and Vale; and many beloved nieces and nephews.

            Deceased in addition to her husband and parents are her sisters, Eleanor, Rose Mary and Delores, and her brothers, Fr. Francis, Leonard and Conrad.

Friends will be received from 9:00 am to 11:00 am Saturday, September 23, 2023, in St. Patrick Church at 317 West Pike Street in Canonsburg, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial to be celebrated at 11:00 a.m. in St. Patrick Roman Catholic.

Arrangements are in the care of Mario L. DeAngelo Funeral Home in Canonsburg.

Interment will follow in the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies at a later date.

A tribute wall is available at www.deangelocare.com.

In lieu of flowers, charitable contributions may be made in her memory the Mental Health Association of Washington County, and the Washington Symphony Orchestra.

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