Mary C. Dimando

WATERBURY
Mary C. Dimando
"Beloved mother, grandmother, great grandmother and city teacher"
Mary C. Dimando, 103 years young, went on to her eternal reward on Wednesday, February 22, 2023, surrounded by her loving family in the comfort of her home. She was the wife of the late Marvin (Mr. D/Mickey) L. Dimando. Mary was born on July 4, 1919 to Frank and Anna Cucciarre of White Plains, NY.
The youngest of three daughters, Mary grew up on Lake Street in White Plains, one block from her father's shoe store. Proud of their Albanian heritage, Mary's family spoke Albanian in their home, though her parents also spoke fluent Italian and English.
At the age of twelve, Mary enrolled in ballet school where she later sat under the tutelage of the great Russian dancer/choreographer, Mikhail Fokine, and danced at the Metropolitan Opera House and Madison Square Garden as a junior ballerina. Mary studied dance and, also, pursued her degree in Early Childhood Education at New York University in NYC.
While in high school, Mary met her best friend's cousin, Mickey, at a family party in Mamaroneck, NY. Mickey was active in local theater and so the Performing Arts were a mutual interest. After serving in the army during World War II, Mickey returned from Europe and wed Mary. He worked as a merchandise manager and buyer at Genunge's Department store and Mary continued working at a private school in rural Westchester County, where her students experienced the animals and gardens that filled the Tobin estate. Her teaching was dynamic and the children not only learned from the wonderful experiences they encountered, but they thrived beyond their own personal struggles. These lessons would form the interactive, compassionate teaching style that Mary used years later when she worked in inner city schools with children of diverse backgrounds.
As they were raising their two daughters, Pam and Barbara, the Dimandos moved from Yorktown Heights, NY to Waterbury, CT where Mary returned to teaching. This time, it was in the new Pre-Primary Program, teaching preschool (Merriman and Maloney Schools). True to form, Mary made many friends among her colleagues creating lifelong friendships over the years. However, family was a priority to the Dimandos, and so the family drove to White Plains every weekend for many years to have Sunday dinner at Grandma's house. Holidays were spent with family too, so the road to NY was well-traveled!
Many wonderful events took place in the years following, most especially, the birth of Mary's grandson, Michael. After 23 years of teaching in the Waterbury School System, Mary retired only to become the Director of the Waterbury YWCA Daycare Program where she taught and directed the program until she was 76.
Mary remained active, tending to family, traveling to her home on Cape Cod for summer vacations and many Fourth of July celebrations (also her birthday), enjoying a growing family that included her great grandchildren, Demetrius and Anna, and staying involved in her church. Her faith in Christ has been part of her life from the start having been raised in a devout Christian home. She found new meaning and a deeper consecration as she accepted Christ into heart in 1988 along with her husband, and attributes her good health all these years to the practice of reading healing Scriptures daily before bedtime.
It's impossible to sum up 103 wonderful years in a few paragraphs, but there are so many people who have touched Mary's life and so many whose lives she has impacted-all the students who have been blessed to get a start in their young lives with an education in her classroom, all the friends whose lives have been enriched by sharing the journey along the way, and the family that has come to cherish her for the love she gave freely and the words she has fitly spoken to each of us in the different seasons of our lives.
We celebrate a life well-lived that stretches our own personal vision for long life! Mom, you will be missed beyond measure, loved for eternity, and we are consoled with the truth that we will meet again to dwell with you in the presence of the Lord forever.
Mary leaves behind to cherish her memory, her daughters, Pam Gervickas (and Bill) of Prospect, Barbara Dimando of Waterbury; a grandson, Michael Gervickas and great grandchildren, Demetrius and Anna Gervickas of Saddle Brook, NJ; many nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends. She was predeceased by her two sisters, Angela Cucciarre and Josepha Deltufo.
Arrangements: A funeral service will be held on Wednesday, March 1, 2023, 10:00 a.m. at House of Prayer Church, 1245 Thomaston Ave, Waterbury. Burial will follow at Mount Calvary Cemetery in White Plains, NY. A calling hour will be held the morning of the service from 9:00 – 10:00 a.m. at the House of Prayer Church. Chase Parkway Memorial, the Albini Family Funeral Home, 430 Chase Parkway, Waterbury, has been entrusted with handling Mary's funeral arrangements. Mary's family kindly asks that you please wear masks as some family members have underlying health conditions.