Virginia DeConto

Virginia (Bray) DeConto

September 18, 1924 - March 30, 2025

Winchester, MA

Virginia (Bray) DeConto, beloved mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and devoted wife, passed away peacefully at her Winchester home on March 30, 2025. Her final days were filled with the comfort of her large family's devoted and loving care. She left this world after 100 remarkable and healthy years to see the face of Jesus, which was her greatest desire.

Virginia was predeceased by Richard DeConto, her loving husband of 67 years, and two daughters, Jeanne and Ann DeConto. Also, her parents Stephen and Marguerita Bray, and siblings, John and Stephen Bray and Margaret Montvitt. Virginia was the cherished matriarch of the Bray family, one of the last of her generation, and a beloved aunt to many.

Ginny, by all who knew and loved her, lived an idyllic childhood in the small town of Holliston, MA. She regaled us throughout her life with stories of long bike rides on the country roads, ice skating and skiing in the winter, playing tennis and other sports. She was a carefree, outdoorsy girl, with a constant, loyal companion in Toby, her German Shepherd, who followed her to school and sat at her feet while she read. Ginny lived in a neighborhood surrounded by her large Irish family, including her immigrant grandparents, parents and three younger siblings, aunts, uncles and cousins. She visited daily with various members of her extended family, and almost daily, she would stop by her Aunt Dolly's nearby neighborhood shop and enjoy a chocolate ice-cream shake. She took weekend trips with aunts and cousins, and enjoyed beloved summer weeks at Hampton Beach with her family and relatives.

While a bit of a tomboy, Ginny also had a passion for music and dancing. Her father, a classically trained pianist who led an orchestra, played for Saturday night dances and Ginny cherished those nights dancing in her late teens and twenties. She also played piano quite well and played the organ at her church each weekend throughout college. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in Education from Framingham State College, where she was class president for two years. Her class yearbook describes her with a keen sense of rhythm; "when Ginny plays the piano you can't help listening, and when she dances, you can't help watching. Likes the wide open spaces.... and we like those wide open blue eyes." During her summer she waitressed at Wentworth by the Sea, and she recalled carrying trays of lobsters to the guests while celebrating VE Day and the end of World War II. Upon graduation she taught elementary school in Connecticut for three years. During another summer break at Hampton Beach, she met a well-dressed, handsome young man named Richard; whose charm instantly caught her attention. The connection was immediate, and after just a six month courtship, they were married. Her teaching experience quickly became quite useful as she started her family - and her most important vocation and greatest joy in life: mother to 11 children. She believed her children were a gift from God and they were her pride and joy. Together, Ginny and Richard raised their family in Winchester, and summers were happily spent at the family cottage on Cape Cod Bay in North Eastham. In later years, our parents divided their time between homes in Chatham and Winchester. In both locations, they made treasured friends who became like family.

Ginny was a lighthearted soul, who enjoyed simple pleasures. She loved antiquing and thrifting, and was an avid reader, collecting books on health and nutrition, cooking and spirituality. She had a unique sense of what was important in life and clipped a multitude of newspaper and magazine articles with interesting philosophical or spiritual truths. She was an avid walker and practiced yoga for many years. She loved long conversations on the telephone with friends and family. One of her greatest strengths, in addition to her sharp memory, was her card and letter writing skills. She rarely missed sending a card or note for a holiday, birthday, special occasion or appreciation. She had a knack for choosing just the right little gift to make the recipient feel special - a trait which was especially treasured by her beloved 21 grandchildren. After selflessly raising her own large family, she and Richard had the opportunity to travel around the US and abroad, yet truly her greatest joy was welcoming another grandchild or great grandchild to the family.

In addition to family, perhaps her greatest devotion was her deep and abiding faith. A lifelong Catholic, Ginny cultivated a strong relationship with Jesus. She maintained absolute trust in his care for her life and instilled in her children the importance of daily prayer. Ginny was a member of St. Mary's Church for 73 years, and a member of the St. Mary's Mother's Club and Sodality. In her later years, she found daily solace and unwavering purpose in quiet study of the Bible and other spiritual readings.

She is survived by nine children, Ralph (Brenda) DeConto, Kissimmee, FL, Stephen (Donna) DeConto, Winchester, MA, Joseph DeConto, Springfield, MO, Mary (Craig) Cowan, Reading, MA, Margaret (Steven) Smith, Forest, VA, Richard (Lidia) DeConto, Tampa, FL, Virginia Barnabei, Woburn, MA, Theresa Goodwin (Michael LeMire), Gilford, NH, and Elizabeth (Christopher) Waaler, Yarmouth, ME, 21 grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren.

Though she may not walk beside us, her spirit and love lives on in the hearts of all who knew and loved her.



Family and friends are kindly invited to a Celebration of Life to be held Friday, May 23 at St. Mary's Church in Winchester at 10:00 am, followed by burial at Wildwood Cemetery, Winchester. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in memory of Virginia DeConto to Catholic TV Network, PO Box 9196, 34 Chestnut St., Watertown, MA 02471 or Catholic TV.org.