Arlene Hrisko

Arlene Joyce Hrisko (nee Giambetro), age 86, died on July 21, 2025. Beloved wife of Paul; loving mother of sons Paul (Evelyn), Peter (deceased) and Preston; cherished daughter of Albert and Julia Giambetro (both deceased); dearest daughter-in-law of Elvera Warnick (deceased); dear sister of Albert "Buddy" Giambetro (Kathy) (both deceased) and Richard Giambetro (Marilyn); dear sister-in-law of Jim Hrisko (Karolina); dear step-grandmother of Lydia Schmidt.
Aunt to Michelle Hrisko (deceased), Dawn Vondrasek (Rob), Jennifer Hrisko, Brian Giambetro (deceased) (Kelli) and Richard Giambetro.
Cousin to Adolph "Sonny" Macerol (Emily) (both deceased), Donald Mihelcic (Karen), Janice Slife (Bob) and Jim Mihelic (Elaine).
Arlene was born on August 20, 1938 and grew up on E. 61st St. in the Slovenian neighborhood of St. Vitus Parish where she lived a half a block away from her future-husband, Paul. They first met 75 years ago as grade school students and developed a beautiful friendship that led to a 62-year marriage. ("Only Forever.")
She completed her elementary education at St. Vitus School. She then attended and graduated from Notre Dame Academy (NDA) in 1956 where she was elected Senior Class President and selected "Miss Photogenic."
Arlene acted and sang in theatre productions in grade school and high school, including the play, "High Ground" at NDA. She had a beautiful singing voice. She partnered with street pal and classmate, Helen Pavlik, and the two harmonized duets at various locations, including Harmony Ranch. A notable performance was their television appearance on Uncle Jake's House, a local 1950s television show for children on Channel 5. The two of them were part of a close-knit foursome which also included Mary Ann Zak and Dorothy Pevec. The four also teamed up and played for a neighborhood basketball team called, "The Gallant Gals." Mary Ann's sister, Audrey, a lifelong close friend, was the Maid of Honor at her wedding.
After high school, she worked for Steel Improvement & Forge Company (SIFCO) as Executive Assistant for several executives, including CEO Kevin O'Donnell.
Arlene, Paul and their sons moved to Cleveland Heights in 1971 where she lived for 54 years. She was a member of the Castleton Road Street Association and helped organize block parties and wrote the street newsletter.
In 1978, she began working as a Legal Assistant for Professor James W. McElhaney at Case Western Reserve University School of Law. She also worked for an additional number of professors and retired in 2012, after serving for almost 34 years. During her tenure, she made many friends with fellow legal assistants, law professors and law students.
She had many and diverse interests: cooking, gardening, singing, watching classic movies and sporting events and traveling.
Arlene was an excellent cook and prepared wonderful meals. One of her signature dishes was breaded chicken and linguine (with garlic picked from her garden), garnished with lemon slices and sprinkled with parsley.
She collected many cookbooks and thousands of printed recipes. She also designed and created her own mini-cookbook for her sons to use on their own, entitled "Methods for Mama's Boy Meals."
One of her favorite hobbies was gardening, where she took great care of her colorful geraniums planted in her numerous terra cotta pots, strategically placed on the front steps and Grandma's Old Wooden Bench behind the garage.
Watching classic movies such as "Casablanca" and "Now, Voyager" while sipping on a glass of red wine, was one of her joys in life.
Arlene also enjoyed watching baseball, basketball and football – from the grade school level to the professional ranks. She was also invaluable to the St. Louis CYO football teams of the mid-1970s by taking Super-8 film footage of each game, later viewed and broken down by the coaches in the Hrisko recreation room. She was always there in attendance, rooting for her husband and three sons, all Benedictine High School quarterbacks, while cheering on their teams. She is our Honorary QB!
Later in life, she traveled to New Orleans, Los Angeles and New York and Europe four times. Some of her favorite cities were Munich, Rome and Budapest. One highlight was visiting Paris for her 70th birthday celebration. ("We'll always have Paris.")
Her kindness and thoughtfulness extended to family, relatives and friends. She took great joy in making others' birthdays, Christmases, holidays and special occasions extra special with her unique and stylized gift-wrapping along with handwritten notes that displayed her distinctive writing style and penmanship.
Arlene dedicated her life as a devoted wife and mother, a role she embraced with all her heart and soul. Her family was the most important part of her life and she leaves behind a legacy of caring and love that will be cherished and remembered - "Beyond These Few Moments."
Family to receive relatives and friends for visitation from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m at St. Vitus Church, 6019 Lausche Ave., Cleveland, OH 44103. A funeral mass will follow at 12:00pm at the church.
Upon completion of the mass, family, relatives and friends are welcome to attend a luncheon across the street at the St. Vitus Parish Hall. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to be made in Arlene's memory to the Greater Cleveland Food Bank, 13815 Coit Rd., Cleveland, OH 44110; by phone: (216) 535-2051 or to St. Vitus Church. To plant a beautiful memorial tree in memory of Arlene, please visit our Tree Store.