Corinne L. Conte, 87
PITTSFIELD, Mass. â€' Corinne Louise Conte, 87, of Mill Valley, Calif., and Pittsfield, widow of U.S. Rep. Silvio O. Conte, died Tuesday, April 28, 2009, of natural causes at the home of her daughter, Sylvia Certo, surrounded by her family.
Born in Pittsfield on Jan. 24, 1922, to Charles and Kathleen Clemente Duval, she won the New England Championship for greast stroke swimming at age 13. She graduated from Pittsfield High School and from the former St. Luke's School of Nursing in Pittsfield.
A Navy veteran of World War II, she met the late congressman, who was recovering from an illness while serving in the Construction Battalion, or Seabees. They were married in Pittsfield on Nov. 8, 1947. Congressman Conte, who represented the 1st Massachusetts Distrct, died on Feb. 8, 1991.
Upon her husband's election to Congress in 1958, Mrs. Conte moved to Bethesda, Md., where she raised their four children and worked as a real estate agent with Boss and Phelps Real Estate Co.
She was an active campaigner for her husband, meeting every U.S. president from Dwight D. Eisenhower to George H.W. Bush, and many of the world's leaders from the 1950s through the early 1990s. She also danced with President Johnson at his inaugural ball and served on President Bush's special Committee on Mental Health in the late 1980s.
Mrs. Conte was an avid Red Sox fan and was very thankful that she lived to see the "Curse of the Bambino" broken. She was committed to her Catholic faith and was a daily communicant for years at Little Flower Church in Bethesda, and the former Notre Dame Church and St. Joseph's Church. In her younger years, she had a private pilot's license. She enjoyed playing cards on a daily basis while in Mill Valley. She enjoyed a last game with her children, which she won decisively, a few days before her death.
She was a friendly and cheerful person who was loved by everyone who knew her. Her twinkling blue eyes will be dearly missed by all.
In honor of Mrs. Conte, all flags in the city of Pittsfield were to be flown at half-staff on Thursday, May 7.
Besides her daughter and son-in-law Nick Certo, with whom she'd resided for four years, she leaves two more daughters, Michelle M. Webb and her husband, Harry, of Hardwick and Gayle L. Conte-Fowler and her husband, Gary Fowler, of Orosi, Costa Rica; a son, John F.X. Conte and his wife, Betsy, of West Simsbury, Conn.; her sister, Kathleen Tournier and her husband, Joseph, of Pittsfield; her sisters-in-law Elizabeth Baldessarini and Angie Bowerman, both of Pittsfield and her brother-in-law, Donald Reid of South Dennis; her grandchildren Jason Webb and his wife, Alison, Ryan Webb and his wife, Betsy, Corinne Webb, Jake Conte, Patrick Conte, Nicholas Certo and Mia Certo, her great-grandchildren Travis Webb, Justin Webb and Samantha Webb and many nieces and nephews.
She was pre-deceased by her brothers-in-law Joseph Baldessarini and Lawrence Bowerman and sister-in-law Sylvia Reid.
FUNERAL NOTICE â€' Funeral services for Mrs. Conte will be Monday, May 4, with a Liturgy of Christian Burial at 10 a.m. at St. Joseph's Church, 414 North St., Pittsfield. Burial will follow in St. Joseph's Cemetery.
Calling hours will be Sunday, May 3, from 4 to 7 at Dery Funeral Home, 54 Bradford St., Pittsfield, MA 01201; 413-443-9151. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that contributions be made to the Silvio O. and Corinne L. Conte Scholarship Fund at Boston College, More Hall 220, 140 Commonwealth Avenue, Chestnut Hill, MA 02457, in care of Joanne Goggins, executive director. This fund was established to provide scholarships for students from the 1st Congressional District.