Evelyn T. Gallese, 92
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Evelyn T. Gallese, 92, of 312 Eagle St. died peacefully Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2010, at home after a brief illness.
Born in North Adams on March 5, 1917, daughter of Roger and Tamara Simon Peters, she attended local schools.
Mrs. Gallese was a food service manager for many years at the former St. Joseph's School and later in the Adams-Cheshire School District, from which she retired in the late 1970s.
She was a communicant of the former St. Francis of Assisi Church, now St. Elizabeth of Hungary.
An enthusiastic advocate for the city, she enjoyed volunteering at the tourist information booth and at Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, where she celebrated her 90th birthday in 2007. She loved dancing, and was a charter member of the Rhythm Belles, a local line dancing group, with which she entertained at nursing homes throughout the Berkshires and Southern Vermont. She and her husband enjoyed ballroom dancing and traveling in their later years. She also enjoyed bridge, which she played with passion, until taking ill this past fall.
Mrs. Gallese often remarked how blessed she was with her loving family and that family was the most important thing in her life. She was fiercely proud of her Lebanese heritage, which she celebrated through music, dance and food. Her relatives were the beneficiaries of many ethnic meals and recipes. She especially enjoyed participating in an annual regional Lebanese reunion in Brattleboro, Vt.
Her husband, Alfred F. Gallese, whom she married in St. Francis on July 18, 1936, died Feb. 14, 1983.
She leaves three daughters, Marilyn Carlson of Hopkinton, Leslie Schmidt of Greenfield and Diane Gallese-Parsons of North Adams, a former city councilor; two sons, Alfred Gallese Jr. of the town of Florida and Roger Gallese, her primary caregiver and with whom she made her home; seven grandchildren, Mark Parsons and Claudine Preite, both of North Adams, Sarah Kline of Adams, Jeffrey Gallese of Fernandina Beach, Fla., Kristen and Alex Schmidt, both of Boston, and Miranda Carlson of Northbridge; 10 great-grandchildren, Hayden, Austin and Naomi Parsons, Taylor and Abigail Kline, Fallon, Chase and Thane Gallese, Alicia Davis and Davin Evans; two great-great-grandchildren and nieces and nephews, including her godchild, Christine Hart of Lake Worth, Fla.
She was predeceased by her granddaughter Justine Parsons and three sisters and three brothers, Adele Dellea, Isabel Peters, Lillian Novak, Francis Peters, Karem "John" Peters and Alfred Peters.
FUNERAL NOTICE — The funeral for Mrs. Gallese will be Monday, Feb. 22, at 10:15 a.m. from Flynn & Dagnoli-Montagna Home for Funerals, Central Chapels, 74 Marshall St., North Adams followed by a Funeral Mass at 11 at St. Elizabeth of Hungary Church. Burial will follow in Southview Cemetery.
Calling hours will be Sunday, Feb. 21, from 3 to 6 at the funeral home. Memorial contributions are suggested for St. Elizabeth of Hungary Church or Mass MoCA in care of the funeral home.