Marianna Ruth Toffetti's Obituary
Marianna Ruth Toffetti passed away peacefully on January 14, 2023. She was born in Brooklyn, NY on January 4, 1933, to the late Ernest and Ruth Warsin. Marianna was preceded in death by her late, beloved husband Saverio Toffetti (1938 – 1979), her son Gregory Toffetti (1966 –2015).
Marianna grew up in Middle Village, NY where she attended public school. Upon graduating she began a seventeen year career in retail, culminating in the role of Buyer’s Representative for Federated Retail Stores.
On a fateful evening in 1963 she and a girlfriend had dinner at a small French restaurant where Saverio was working as a bartender. She was smitten and made several more visits to his bar before he finally asked her out. They were married in 1965 and began their family. Gregory arrived first, followed by her surviving daughter Jennifer Mattern and surviving son, Geoffrey Toffetti.
After Gregory was born, they bought a quaint little house in Ossining, NY where they settled into an active family life. Before long the couple had fostered several great friendships that came to define what Marianna would declare as her best years.
In 1978 the family moved to St. Petersburg, FL to remain near Saverio’s parents who had recently relocated there. Eight months after arriving in FL Saverio was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor, to which he succumbed just two months later.
Marianna was left devasted with three young children. While this time was very dark for her she put her kids first and provided a loving and warm home for them. Nightly family dinners were the lynch pin of family life in the aftermath of Saverio’s parting. Family traditions also fostered a sense of normalcy, like Dal Italia Pizza while trimming the Christmas tree and New Year’s Eve parties for all the neighbors.
Marianna took great pride in being a homemaker and mother. She had deep faith and was comforted in the knowledge that she would one day be reunited with the love of her life. She was an avid reader. In her twenties she compiled a list of one thousand books she was determined to read, she made it into the 900’s before Alzheimer’s took reading away from her.
She was an expert at completing crossword puzzles and often surprised people with her vast vocabulary. Marianna was ever humble, never acknowledging her great intellect, instead emphasizing the intelligence of her husband and children over her own.
Marianna was a very proficient amateur genealogist. She was a proud member of the Daughters of the American Revolution since 1974, initially in the Mohegan chapter in Ossining, NY and later in the Boca Ciega Chapter in St. Petersburg, FL. She was also a member of the John Libby Family Association, which is dedicated to documenting the progeny of her earliest ancestor in the Americas. During her time with the D.A.R. Marianna documented seven ancestors who fought in the Revolutionary War, all before the internet, admitting her to rarified territory in the D.A.R. She also served as an Officer in NSDAR.
Despite having endured several tragic episodes in her life she remained kind and patient. She never held a grudge or spoke poorly of others. Her home was always open to friends in need even when she had no money and very few resources. Whether it was cooking up pounds of pasta to feed a group of hungry teens or letting wayward friends crash for weeks or even months. She had a great laugh that could get others laughing, the trick always was to get her laughing in the first place…
In addition to her two living children Marianna is survived by six grandchildren, Abigail Mattern, Saverio Mattern, Dominic Mattern, Deanna Mattern, Declan Toffetti, and Silas Toffetti.
A mass will be held in her honor on January 30, 2023, at 10:00 AM at Holy Cross Catholic Church, located at 7851 54th Ave N., St. Petersburg, FL 33709, followed by a graveside ceremony at Memorial Park at 11:30 AM located 5750 49th Street N., St. Petersburg, FL 33709.
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