Mary Frances Libassi

Mary Frances Libassi (Steen) 91, passed away peacefully on February 7, 2023, at the Caleb Hitchcock Health Center of Duncaster in Bloomfield CT. Born in Memphis Tennessee on December 21, 1931, where she resided until 1953 when she decided to attend Yale Divinity School in New Haven CT. She and Peter Libassi were married in 1954 and they moved between New York City, Albany, and Washington D.C. before settling in the Hartford area over 50 years ago.

Mary Fran graduated with honors from Southwestern University in 1953 and went on to attend Yale Divinity School and Union Theological Seminary for a master's degree in religious education. While raising a family in Washington D.C. she returned to school part time to work on a masters in social work which she completed in 1973 at The University of Connecticut School of Social Work. Her two major areas of interest were aging and mental health. She joined the faculty in 1980 and taught until she retired in 1994. During retirement she continued as a faculty advisor of field placement students for the university.

1951 was a pivotal year for Mary Frances, at the age of nineteen she traveled to Europe with the World Council of Churches to help with the rebuilding of Europe. She spent much of her time in France at a student work camp helping to repair buildings and roads at the College Cevenol. In her spare time she traveled to other parts of Europe, including Berlin where she met the Scroders, a family she had been sending Care packages to since the end of the war. She was impressed by the optimism and hospitality of the Europeans she met. Lifelong friendships were established on the trip, as well as the desire to learn more about the world outside of Memphis and the problems it faced. This led to an internship in Philadelphia the next summer where she met her future husband Peter, as well as the desire to go to an interdenominational seminary, she entered Yale Divinity School in 1953 and she and Peter were married at the chapel there in 1954.

Upon graduating she worked in religious education, first with the Brooklyn Council of Churches and then as the director of education at Westminster Church in Albany. When they relocated to Washington D.C., she became very busy with three small children and part-time classes in pursuit of her masters in social work.

After receiving her second masters Mary Frances went into case work before joining the faculty at The School of Social Work in 1980. In addition to teaching one of her greatest joys was working with graduate students one on one during their field placements at a variety of community agencies across the state. She served on various faculty committees including chairing the Casework Sequence Department and the Health Substantive Area Committee. She was involved in curriculum development of two new courses and various seminars while at the university. She wrote numerous grant proposals, one with the National Institute of Mental Health that awarded stipends to graduate students at the university. One of her most exciting projects was when as coordinator for the Council on Social Work Education she piloted a curriculum project on the use of medication with clients, this resulted in three satellite broadcasts on psychopharmacology to schools of social work across the country.

While on sabbatical she worked with the Department of Mental Health to integrate behavioral health with primary care and to transition social work services from institutions to the community. She also became very active at Wheeler Clinic, both as an educator of numerous masters' level field placement students form the School of Social Work and as a member of the Board of Trustees for fourteen years. She served a total of ten years as chair of the Planning Committee during the development of the first long range plan, as well as three years as chairman of the board. While there she worked with clinic leaders to develop an education fund that not only provided stipends for social work students but provided funds for continuing education for the social work staff.

Mary Frances enjoyed playing the piano, traveling, the symphony, Broadway shows, and spending time with friends, family, and, most importantly, her beloved husband and life partner, Peter. Mary Frances is survived by her three children: Thomas, Timothy, and Jennifer, her daughter-in-law Loredana Grandis, her grand-daughters and their spouses: Karina and Jarred Hutchison, Antonia and Tucker Bryan, Francesca, Isabella and Danielle Libassi, and her great-grandson Liam Hutchison.

The Libassi family would like to thank the staff of Duncaster, Caleb Hitchcock and the health care aides for the excellent care they provided Mary Frances and for their friendship, love, and support.

Mary Frances will be buried with her husband Peter in a private service. In memory of her life, contributions may be made to the following charities: The Bushnell, Wheeler Clinic, Hands on Hartford, or the Duncaster Foundation.