Dorothy Mastromonaco

1931 - 2014

Mastromonaco, Dorothy
Dorothy Claire (Coffey) Mastromonaco, age 82, the loving wife of the late Peter Fortuanto Mastromonaco, took her final breaths in the presence of her family on Tuesday, March 11, 2014 in the Jefferson House in Newington, Connecticut. She resided in Bridgeport, Meriden, and most recently in Newington.
Dorothy, "Dotsie," was born in the Bronx on October 29, 1931 to the late Jeanette and Michael Coffey. She performed the Jitter Bug in various venues in the Bronx with her brother, Edward. Her Uncle Jack Coffey was a renowned baseball player and coach at Fordham University.
At age sixteen, she married Peter and moved to Bridgeport where her husband ran the Bridgeport branch of the Bronx Casket Company. She had her first child, Michael, at the age of 17, followed by Leonard, Peter, Claire and Edward. All her children graduated from St. Peter Grammar School in Bridgeport and went on to successful careers. In 1968, she began a long career in cosmetic retail at Gimbels Department Store (now the Margaret Morton Government Center).
Her happiest times were spending precious moments with her children and seventeen grandchildren - each one of them giving her unique joys and laughter. She spent much of her leisure time playing Scrabble, reading, watching game shows and taking trips to California to visit her sons, Pete and Len, and their families. She provided a loving and beautiful home where friends and her children's friends would always be welcomed.
Her legacy is: son, Michael and his wife, Joan and their four children, Edward (deceased), Michael, Andrew, and Stefanie; son, Leonard and his wife, Anne and their three children, Alicia, Amy and Anthony; son, Peter and his wife, Ellis and their children, Mark and Christine; daughter, Claire and her partner, Ralph Venturini and her five children, Peter, Christopher, Emma, James, and Genevieve; and son, Edward and his wife, Robin and their three children, Timothy, Sean, and Patricia. She is also survived by her two brothers, Edward and his wife, Barbara of Mexico and Patrick of Long Island. In addition to her husband and parents, she was predeceased by her sister Margaret and her brother Bernard.
Friends and family may call on Tuesday, March 18, 2014 from 10 a.m. until noon followed by a Memorial Service at the Shaughnessey Banks Funeral Home 50 Reef Rd. in Fairfield Center. Inurnment will follow in Mountain Grove Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Dorothy's name to Vital Voices via www.vitalvoices.org, an organization that empowers women across the globe to make positive and historic changes. To send an online condolence, please visit www.shaughnesseybanks.com.