Marlene Barbara Aiello

Marlene Barbara Aiello, 92, passed away at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula on January 6th, 2026, of natural causes after a brief illness. A lifelong resident of Monterey, she was born to Ernest Perry and Kathryn Mercurio in 1933, the second of three daughters.

Marlene grew up on old Oliver Street and graduated from Monterey High School in 1951. It was there she first encountered her future husband and love of her life, Neno Richard Aiello. Marlene loved to tell the story of seeing Neno crossing the quad in high school and thinking that is the man she would marry. Little did either of them know that 10 years later, while Marlene was walking home from church in the rain, Neno would stop to offer her a ride. They married in 1958 and would settle into a house by the Monterey Fairgrounds where they raised three children.

Marlene's first job in high school was at JC Penney on Alvarado Street as a salesgirl. (Always a beauty, she even did some modeling for them). She also worked at John Hancock Insurance. In addition to raising her children, she worked for the Monterey Unified School District at Ord Terrace Elementary and at Santa Catalina School from 1977 to her retirement in 1998. She loved gardening and was passionate about genealogy and researching her family history. In the days before the internet, Marlene traced her family tree back to the 18th century and discovered relatives from the Basque region of France and Spain. Getting to actually connect and meet with her new family was one of the delights of her life.

Marlene was preceded in death by her husband, Neno, in 2007; sister, Doreen Palencia and half-brother, Donald Perry. She leaves behind her daughter, Mary Stewart (David) of Monterey and sons, Mark Aiello (Gwendalena) of Seaside and Matthew Aiello (Kimberly) of Torrance. Marlene is also survived by her sister, Shirley Campo of San Mateo and nieces, Diane Hendrix and Karen Moore; half-sisters, Linda Natale and Tina Albrecht, sisters-in-law, Donna Aiello and Jill Aiello, and many nieces, nephews and cousins.

Our family would like to acknowledge and thank her dear friends Sam Tarantino, Annette Brown and Hope Cardinalli, and her nephew Rick Russo. We are immensely grateful for the love and help you gave our mother over the years.

To honor her life, the family kindly suggests a donation in Marlene's name to your favorite charity.

Arrangements are pending with Mission Mortuary.