Category Archives: blog

Nancy M. White

Nancy M. (LeFave) White – 81, of North Reading and formerly of Wakefield,  died Saturday, January 14, 2017, at Winchester Hospital, after a brief illness. She was the loving wife of the Late George J. White, Sr.

Born in Wakefield on July 18, 1935, she was the daughter of the late Laurence and Marion (Doucette) LeFave. Nancy was raised and attended school in Wakefield. She has been a resident of North Reading for the past 55 years.

Nancy worked for many years, at her family’s owned business, Kitty’s Restaurant in North Reading.

She was a loving mother, giving and caring person, spiritual, supportive and considerate. Nancy enjoyed playing Keno, baking, bowling, golfing, loved watching sports (Red Sox and Patriots). She was crafty, always thinking of others and she loved her cats.

Family members include her loving children, Scott E. White and his girlfriend Linda Nunez, Wendy M. DeMonico  and Ashley Zecchilli, all of North Reading, George J. White, Jr. and his wife Susan of Lawrence and Bonnie Toth and her husband Myron of Wakefield; sisters, Ruth Henderson, Jean Townsend, Marlene LeFave and Frances Green; late brothers, Laurence “Larry” and William LeFave; late sister, Cecilla Beaumont; 5 cherished grandchildren, Olivia and Sofia DeMonico, Kerry Kruse, Heather Torra and Danielle Talieri; 7 great grandchildren, Kya, Gia, Halee, Nicholas, Francesca, Matteo and Rocco; and many nieces and nephews.

Her Funeral will be held from the Croswell Funeral Home, 19 Bow Street, North Reading on Saturday, January 21 at 9:15 AM, followed by a 10:30 AM Funeral Mass at St. Theresa’s Church, 63 Winter Street (Rt. 62), North Reading. Calling hours will be held on Friday, January 20 from 4 to 8 PM. Burial will be Wildwood Cemetery in Wilmington. Memorial donations may be made in her memory to: American Cancer Society, 30 Speen Street, Framingham, MA 01701 or to Disabled American Veterans, VA Regional Office – Room 1575B, JFK Federal Building, Boston, MA 02203. www.croswellfuneralhome.com

Lucy Walker

Lucy (Dinn) Walker – 98, of Salem, MA, formerly of Stoneham, North Reading, Dorchester and Gloucester, died Thursday, January 12, 2017, at The Lafayette in Marblehead. Beloved wife of the late Eugene E. Walker.
Born in Gloucester, MA on November 8, 1918, she was the daughter of the late James and Mary Lillian (Carew) Dinn. Lucy was raised in Gloucester and Dorchester and graduated from St. Patrick’s High School in Boston.
Lucy worked as a housekeeper at Carney Hospital in Dorchester and during World War II as a welder. She was a former resident of North Reading for over thirty years and attended St. Theresa’s Church.
She was intelligent, thoughtful, generous, kind, adventurous and had a wonderful sense of humor. She had brains, beauty, sophistication, poise and class. Her faith never waivered. She loved to travel and see new places, she enjoyed gardening, golfing, nature and painting. Lucy loved tea and drank it all day, you could say, she was a one of a kind. She was compassionate and full of forgiveness, she loved her family and everyone had a special place in her heart, regardless of the circumstance.
Family members include her son, Jacob Donat of Lexington; grandchildren, Sheila M. Walker of Wakefield, Sharon Nerboso of Belmont and Josh Donati of Littleton; great grandchildren, Jack Donati, Lilly Nerboso and Jared McMahan.
Her funeral will be held from the Croswell Funeral Home, 19 Bow Street, North Reading on Thursday, January 19 at 8:45 AM, followed by a 10 AM Funeral Mass at St. Theresa’s Church, 63 Winter Street (Rt. 62), North Reading. Calling hours will be held on Wednesday, January 18 from 6 to 8 PM. Burial will be in St. Joseph’s Cemetery in West Roxbury. Memorial donations may be made in her memory to: St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, PO Box 1000, Dept.142, Memphis, TN 38101-9908.

Ellen M. Raso

Ellen M. (Donnelly)  Raso –  78, of North Reading, formerly of Medford and Charlestown, died at her home on Friday, January 6, 2017. She was the beloved wife of the late Anthony P. Raso.

Born in Boston, MA on March 4, 1938. She was the daughter of the late John T. and Anna M. (Warren) Donnelly. Ellen graduated from grade school at St. Mary’s in Charlestown, High School from Cardinal Cushing in Boston and she received an Accounting Certificate from Bentley College.

Ellen worked in accounting at the Boston Navy Shipyard in Charlestown, until its closure in 1975. She also worked for the Boyd Corporation in Woburn and Baystate Smelting in Somerville.

She was a devoted mother and grandmother. Ellen loved being surrounded by her family and friends. She always went out of her way to make everyone around her feel comfortable and welcome.

Ellen was an active member of the Immaculate Conception Church in Malden and was deeply involved in Parent Teacher Association.

Family members include her loving sons, John Raso of Medford and Stephen Raso and his fiancé Kerri Yuszkus of Wilmington; daughters, Lynne Koeller and Carol Smith and her husband Kevin, all of North Reading; 8 grandchildren, Meaghan, Michael, Katie and Grace Koeller, Colleen, Connor, Aidan and Colin Smith.

Her Memorial Funeral Mass will be held on Saturday, January 14 at 10:30 AM, at St. Mary’s Church, 55 Warren Street, Charlestown. A collation will follow celebrating Ellen’s life at the Knights of Columbus in Charlestown. There will be no calling hours. In lieu of flowers memorial donations may be made in her memory to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, P.O. Box 417005, Boston, MA 02241-7005. Arrangements are by the Croswell Funeral Home, 19 Bow Street, North Reading. www.croswellfuneralhome.com

Helen Bellino Moore

 Helen Bellino Moore of Mesa, Arizona
Helen Bellino Moore, age 83, who lived more than fifty years in Wilmington, MA, passed away peacefully, following a courageous battle with cancer, on January 8, 2017, at her Mesa, Arizona home, surrounded by her three sons Patrick, Wesley and Michael as well as her two remaining siblings Anna Bellino Defeo and Dolores Bellino Kittredge. Helen was the cherished daughter of the late Pasquale and Anna Bellino, turn of the century immigrants from Italy, and was predeceased by her brothers Carmine and Sabbatino and a sister, Jane. In addition to her three sons and two sisters, Helen is survived by her grandchildren, Michael, Jamie, Emily, Wesley, Sammie and Grace. She is also survived by her daughter in law Cathy Moore and her great grandchild Sadi. Helen had many nieces, nephews, cousins and aunts, many of who have survived her.
During her years as a mother raising three boys, Helen worked as a night club singer at the Band Box in Billerica, MA as well as other venues and just about every wedding she attended. She also worked as a secretary in Boston where she was included as an extra playing a secretary in the Thomas Crown Affair starring Steve McQueen. After many years working her way up the ranks to executive administrative assistant to the president of DymoGraphics in Wilmington, Massachusetts, that company was sold in a merger and her job was eliminated. That change motivated her to live out a lifelong dream and start her own company, a staffing firm call Moore Employment.
Moore Employment, based in Wilmington, was enormously successfully at a time when very few women started businesses. In her 25 years operating Moore Employment, she personally met and found jobs for thousands of people in the area. Her reputation at Moore Employment was legendary and she formed many friends and supporters.
During her many years in Wilmington, she was a Communicant at St. Thomas Catholic Church. She was also an active volunteer in many organizations including acting as treasurer of the Wilmington Athletic Boosters Association.
She retired in 2004, selling her company and moving to Mesa, AZ, where the sun shines every day and where she built a new life around her home in a peaceful gated community of retired people from all over America and Canada. Her years in Arizona were blessed and beautiful. She had a wonderful life.
Arizona family and friends will gather at the Holy Cross Catholic Church in East Mesa, AZ at 11 am on January 11 for a Catholic Funeral Mass celebrating Helen’s life. Her remains will then be flown to Boston where there will be a viewing on Tuesday, January 17 from 4 to 8 pm at Croswell Funeral Home, 19 Bow Street, North Reading, MA. The following day, Wednesday, January 18, family and friends will gather at 9 am at Croswell Funeral Home for the trip to St. Theresa Catholic Church in North Reading for a 10:30 am Catholic Funeral Mass. A procession will follow from St. Theresa’s to the Bellino Family Plot at Riverside Cemetery in North Reading for the burial. www.croswellfuneralhome.com

Marcia E. Costanza

Marcia E. (Van Deusen)  Costanza  – 84, of North Reading, died Sunday, January 8, 2017, at the Lahey Hospital and Medical Center in Burlington. She was the beloved wife of the late Ralph P. Costanza, Sr.

Born in Randolph, VT on September 24, 1932, she was the daughter of the late Arthur and Jesse (Hitchcock) Van Deusen. Marcia was a graduate of South Royalton High School in Vermont and she attended the University of Vermont.

She was a floral designer for Mahoney’s in Winchester and also worked as a shoe sales clerk at Eugene’s of Reading.

Marcia has been a resident of North Reading for sixty years. She was a member of the League of Women Voters for over fifty years and served in many roles including president, mentoring new members and providing candidate’s night for every election. She was a very active member of St. Theresa’s Church. She participated in Bible Study, taught CCD and helped in many outreach programs including Christ’s Hands. Marcia was a member of the Garden Club and a Girl Scout leader. Marcia loved playing the piano, traveling and gardening. She was a devoted and loving wife, mother and grandmother.

Family members include her loving son, Ralph P. Costanza, Jr. and his wife Susan of Norfolk, MA; daughters, Karen O’Leary and her husband Daniel of Ipswich and Regina Sanfilippo and her husband Salvatore of Irvine, CA; sisters, Myra Berube of TN and Julia Van Deusen of FL; grandchildren, William, Matthew and Christopher Costanza, David and his wife Valerie and Mark and his wife Megan O’Leary, Michael and Leah Sanfilippo; great grandchildren, Mary Grace, Deirdre and  Xavier O’Leary; and many nieces and nephews.

Her funeral will be held from the Croswell Funeral Home, 19 Bow Street, North Reading on Saturday, January 14 at 9:15 AM, followed by a 10:30 AM Funeral Mass at St. Theresa’s Church, 63 Winter Street (Rt. 62), North Reading. Calling hours will be held on Friday, January 13, from 4 to 7 PM. Burial will be in Riverside Cemetery in North Reading. Memorial donations may be made in her memory to Alzheimer’s Association, 480 Pleasant St., Watertown, MA 02472. www.croswellfuneralhome.com