Obituary of Mary A. DiPasquale

Mary DiPasquale Mother and Grandmother of Love Born in East Bloomfield, NY, on November 16, 1925, Mary Page was one of five children (Thelma, Lewis, Virginia and Marjorie Page) to Remington Bridgland Page and Anna Childs Page. She had a loving childhood and enjoyed working on the farm and going to school. At 18, She met her future husband, Frank DiPasquale, (1920-2001) in Virginia Beach where she was a switchboard operator at the naval base,where he was a sailor. She went along with her sister Virginia who was married to a sailor. A year later, Frank and Mary married in Brooklyn, NY on February 24, 1945 with her brother-in-law, Mike DePasquale and his wife, Florence by their side. They lived with Frank’s mother, Isabella DePasquale in Brooklyn, NY. and then moved into an apartment a block away. In 1945, Mary and Frank gave birth to Isabelann, known as Liz (1945-1995). Liz was born with cerebral palsy: Mary and Frank were determined to do anything they could to give her the best in life and not to allow anyone to tell her she couldn’t do things. They often visited Mary’s family in the East Bloomfield/Canandaigua area. They also visited with Frank’s family in Brooklyn and Long Island as well. They moved into a brand new house in Old Bethpage, NY in 1956 and enjoyed their new home with their daughter. In 1961, they had their second child, Mark. He was the apple of the family’s eye, as he was the baby and the youngest of all the cousins on both sides of the family. Mary was a homemaker and excellent baker. She also loved to garden throughout her life, into her 80’s. She just loved flowers. Mary then met Mark’s girlfriend, Rachael when he was 17. She took one look at her on the backyard patio and told Frank, “That girl is going to be my daughter-in-law one day.” Who knew she would be right. It only took 9 years and two break ups to get there, but in the end, Rachael became her daughter-in-law on July 19, 1987. She enjoyed visiting Rachael and Mark who moved to Rockville Centre, NY. Many weekends were spent enjoying rides on their boat together and going out on the Long Island Sound, the south shore of Long Island and even into the NY harbor. Mary and Frank were ecstatic when Rachael and Mark were expecting their first child, Matthew, in 1991. They were the most attentive and loving grandparents. Mary would often come to their home to watch Matthew, in order to give Rachael and Mark time for date nights and fun outings. Mary would often spoil Matthew with foods and treats that she would never allow her own children to have, but that’s what a Grandma does. Sadly, in 1995, Liz passed away from cancer and Mary and Frank were devastated. It was a long, hard journey. They looked for comfort from family and friends. Then in 1996, another grandson was born, Robert, who helped distract Mary from her grief. She spent most of her time watching her two grandsons or playing with them on visits to Rachael and Mark’s home. Frank often joked that she spent more time with her grandsons than with him, although he visited with them, too. She loved them with all her heart. Many family dinners were spent together and wonderful memories were created. On September 18th, 2001, exactly one week after 9-11, Frank passed away after staying up almost the entire night with Mary, talking about their lives together and how much he loved her and she loved him. She woke up to find the love of her life gone from this earth. It took a long time and many visits with her son, daughter-in-law and grandsons to work her way through her grief. She faced a couple of bumps in the road with her health but she came through very well. She was an active gardener and busy grandmother. In 2012, she moved in with her family in Rockville Centre. She was surrounded by her grandsons, their friends, Mark and Rachael: along with their friends and neighbors. She also enjoyed the company of Rachael’s mother, Arline, every time she would come up from Fla. to visit. (Both would complain that the house was too cold). Everyone knew Mary and thought she was the sweetest, cutest lady. She loved to help around the house with whatever she could do. She especially enjoyed listening to Robert play the piano each day and waited patiently for him to return home from college each break and listen to him play for hours. She was his number 1 fan and supporter. She was so excited to watch his piano performances in town and see him perform on the organ and piano, as music director at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, just around the block. She always said that Matthew and Robert took such great care of her. Mary celebrated her 96th Birthday in November and celebrated with laughter and joy and of course her favorite, birthday cake! She enjoyed Christmas a month later, with the family and the addition of Rob’s girlfriend, Alexandra. On February 19, Mary died peacefully in her sleep while in Hospice. The memories created and the love that she shared will forever stay within the hearts of all those she leaves behind. We love you Mary DiPasquale and we always will. Mark, Rachael, Matthew and Robert