Joyce Darlene Ruberti

Joyce Darlene Ruberti, 82, of La Grande, died Sept. 26, with her husband, Nick, at her bedside. At the request of Joyce, there will be no funeral service.

Joyce was born May 29, 1928, the second of four children to Arthur and Eva (White) Bartels in DeSmet, S.D. She and her family moved to Lebanon when she was a young girl, and she lived there until she graduated from Lebanon High School.

After graduation, she moved to Los Angeles and worked as a bookkeeper. There she met and married her eldest brother's roommate, Nick Ruberti. They had been happily married for 60 years.

Loyalty to her family and friends was one of her defining characteristics. Joyce loved to read and excelled in the art of Tole painting. Her paintings are displayed and enjoyed throughout her home, the homes of family and friends, and in Germany and Japan as well.

Until recently, Joyce attended First Christian Church in La Grande.

Survivors include her three children, Linda and her husband, Earl Helmer, of The Dalles, Lisa and her husband, Kentaro Yamamoto, of Lawrenceville, N.J., and Marc Ruberti and his wife, Tyra, of Baker City; seven grandchildren; four great-grandchildren; and numerous nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents; and three brothers, Richard, Sidney and Jerry Bartels.

Memorial contributions may be made to the National Parkinson Foundation, P.O. Box 5081, Hagerstown, Md., 21741-5018 and the American Lung Association in Oregon, 7420 S.W. Bridgeport Road Suite 200, Tigard 97224-7711.

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