Joy Murrath is best known as the wife of Brian Piccolo, a famous American football player who played for the Chicago Bears. But her story is about much more than being a football player’s wife. Joy’s life shows us what real strength looks like, how love can help us through hard times and how one person can make a big difference in the world.
Detailed Bio Table
| Full Name | Joy Murrath Piccolo O’Connell |
|---|---|
| Born | 1943 |
| Birthplace | United States |
| Hometown | Fort Lauderdale, Florida |
| High School | Central Catholic High School (now St. Thomas Aquinas) |
| First Husband | Brian Piccolo (married 1964–1970) |
| Children with Brian | Three daughters – Lori, Traci, and Kristi |
| Second Husband | Rick O’Connell (married 1973–present) |
| Children with Rick | Two sons – Tom and Mike |
| Total Children | Five |
| Current Home | Delavan, Wisconsin |
| Important Role | President of the Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund |
| Known For | Strength, love, and helping cancer research |
Early Life and Growing Up
Joy Murrath was born in 1943 and grew up in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Her childhood was filled with love, but it also had challenges. Joy had a younger sister named Carol who was born with cerebral palsy. This is a condition that makes it hard for someone to move and control their body.
Taking care of Carol taught Joy important lessons from a young age. She learned to be patient, kind, and caring. While other kids were playing outside, Joy often helped her sister. She never saw this as something bad—she saw it as showing love to someone she cared about. These early experiences helped shape Joy into the strong and caring woman she would become.
Meeting Brian Piccolo: A High School Love Story
Joy met Brian Piccolo when they were both students at Central Catholic High School in Fort Lauderdale. Joy was a cheerleader, full of energy and grace. Brian was a talented football player with big dreams of playing professionally. They were young, but their connection was real and deep.
What made Joy fall in love with Brian wasn’t just his skill on the football field. She loved him because he had a kind heart. One story shows this perfectly: when Brian asked Joy to marry him, he gave her a beautiful diamond ring. But he also gave a smaller diamond ring to Joy’s sister Carol. He wanted Carol to feel special and included, even though she had cerebral palsy. This kind act showed Joy exactly what kind of man Brian was.
Their love grew stronger through high school, and they knew they wanted to spend their lives together.
Marriage and Family
Joy and Brian got married on December 26, 1964. Joy was just 21 years old, and Brian was chasing his dream of playing in the NFL. At that time, Brian hadn’t been picked by any team in the draft, so their future wasn’t certain. They didn’t have a lot of money or a big house. What they had was love and hope for the future.
Brian worked hard and eventually made it onto the Chicago Bears team. Together, Joy and Brian built a happy family. They had three beautiful daughters: Lori, Traci, and Kristi. Brian was a loving father who made time to play with his girls, even when he was busy with football. Joy took care of their home and supported Brian as he worked to become a better player.
Life seemed good. Brian became friends with another player named Gale Sayers. In 1967, they made history by becoming the first Black and white players to share a room in the NFL. Their friendship was special and would later become famous.
When Sadness Came: Brian’s Illness
In 1969, everything changed. Brian started coughing badly and feeling sick. When doctors checked him, they found terrible news—Brian had a rare and dangerous type of cancer called embryonal cell carcinoma. He was only 26 years old.
This was the hardest time in Joy’s life. She stayed by Brian’s side through everything. He had to go through painful surgeries and treatments. Doctors even had to remove one of his lungs. Joy never left him. She gave him strength when he felt weak and hope when things looked dark.
Even during this difficult time, Brian tried to stay positive. He insisted on celebrating their daughter Traci’s birthday, and they filled their home with balloons to make her happy. But the cancer was too strong. On June 16, 1970, Brian died. Joy was only 27 years old, and she was left alone with three young daughters to raise.
Life After Loss: Joy’s Strength Shines
Losing Brian broke Joy’s heart, but she didn’t give up. She had three little girls who needed their mother to be strong. The youngest daughter was only one and a half years old, and the oldest was just four. Joy worked hard to give her daughters a good life, making sure they got a good education and felt loved every day.
In 1970, Joy Murrath started the Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund. She wanted to help other people who were fighting cancer, just like Brian did. This foundation has raised millions of dollars for cancer research over the years. Joy became the president and has worked for this cause for more than 50 years.
Three years after Brian died, Joy found love again. In 1973, she married Rick O’Connell, whose father was a Chicago police officer. Rick worked in the concrete business. Together, they had two sons, Tom and Mike. Joy now had a family of five children—her three daughters and two sons.
Joy and Rick moved to Delavan, Wisconsin, where they built a new life together. But Joy never forgot Brian. She continued to work for the cancer research fund and kept Brian’s memory alive through her work.
A Quiet Life with Big Impact
Joy Murrath didn’t want to be famous. She wanted to help people. Over the years, she has organized fundraising events, golf tournaments, and runs to raise money for cancer research. She has worked with hospitals and schools to spread Brian’s message of courage.
The Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund has helped build Brian Piccolo Middle School in New York. Sports fields in Florida and Illinois have been named after Brian. Wake Forest University, where Brian played college football, started a special cancer fund drive in his name.
Joy Murrath also took care of her mother, Grace Murrath, until Grace passed away in 2022 at the age of 99. This shows how Joy always put family first and cared for the people she loved.
Conclusion
Joy Murrath shows us that real heroes don’t always make headlines. Sometimes the strongest people are the ones who quietly do good things every day. She loved Brian with all her heart. When he died, she could have given up. Instead, she chose to keep going—for her daughters, for other cancer patients, and for Brian’s memory.
Her story reminds us that even when life brings terrible sadness, we can find hope. We can choose to help others. We can turn our pain into purpose. Joy didn’t just survive her loss—she used it to make the world better.
If you want to honor Joy’s story, consider supporting cancer research or helping someone who is going through a hard time. That’s what Joy has been doing for more than 50 years, and that’s what makes her truly special.
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