Mary Engleman

Mary J. Cerqua Engleman BALLSTON LAKE - Mary J. Cerqua Engleman of Ballston Lake and formerly of Waterford passed into the arms of Jesus on February 8, 2016 with her loving son at her bedside. Born and raised in Waterford as the daughter and granddaughter of immigrants from Lazio, Italy, Mary was one of seven children. She had resided in the Clifton Park area for nearly fifty years before an illness that resulted in her stay at a residential care facility. The sixth child of Pietro and Loreta DiCiantis Cerqua, she was a 1940 graduate of Waterford High School and attended business college. Mary was baptized at St. Mary of the Assumption church in Waterford. In 1960 she was married there to William J. Engleman. They lived in Waterford until 1965 when they moved with their young son to Clifton Park. Mary was active in the Saint Gregory’s School Mothers Association and was proud to be a lifelong Democrat. In 1958 Mary founded Cerqua Placement Agency, a full-service employment agency in Troy which she owned and operated for four decades. ‘Miss Cerqua’ never tired of meeting people and counseling clients seeking employment. In the late 1960’s, her husband Bill joined the firm, partnering with her in work as well as life as Agency Manager. She was profiled in the Troy Record newspaper in 1980 as a forerunner in woman-owned businesses. Over her career, Mary directly helped thousands of people - engineers, secretaries, scientists, laborers, service workers and executives - in finding jobs. Like her mother, Mary was a woman of deep faith for whom love of family was the foremost expression of that faith. When faced with setbacks and disappointments, Mary always maintained a positive and hopeful outlook and remembered the good in every person. Mary loved vacationing at Cape Cod with her family, taking day trips to Lake George, and attending concerts and cultural events, such as the New York City Opera and NYC Ballet at SPAC. Mary gardened and was fond of flowers and nature. Throughout her life, she was devoted to her parents and siblings, and was a caregiver in her mother ‘s final years. She dearly loved her husband and her son. Mary looked forward each year to welcoming many of her extended family and friends to her famous Christmas Day dinner extravaganzas at her home. She found her greatest joy in the little moments and blessings of life. In addition to her husband Bill, with whom she was married over 52 years and who passed away February 13, 2013, and her parents, Mary was predeceased by her three brothers, and by her three sisters and their spouses: Olympia and Joseph Centanni , Jennie and John Iafrate, Leo J., Frank P. and Tullio P. Cerqua, and Lena and Norman C. Comtois, and by her in-laws, James and Lorraine Engleman. She was also predeceased by a niece, Rosemarie DiSapio and by nephews, Edward J. Engleman and Norman J. Comtois, by several cousins including Amelia Lombardi and by several dear friends. She is survived by her son William J Engleman, III of Ballston Lake. Cousins, nieces and nephews and a sister-in-law also survive. There will be a Eucharistic Liturgy celebrating Mary’s life on Thursday February 18, 2016 at 10:30 am at the Church of St. Mary of the Assumption, Broad and 6th Street, Waterford, concelebrated by Revs. Donatian Kalgoma and Joseph O’Brien, to which relatives and friends are invited. They may also call from 4 pm to 8 pm on Wednesday, February 17 at the Philip J. Brendese Funeral Home, 133 Broad St., Waterford. Following the funeral, committal will be at the Saratoga National Veteran’s Cemetery. Those wishing to make a memorial contribution in Mary’s name may do so in care of the funeral home, to any of the following: Sisters of the Precious Blood, London, Ontario, Canada; Kateri Shrine, Fonda, NY; Adirondack Wild, Niskayuna, NY or St. John’s- St. Ann’s Center, Albany, NY . To express your sympathy or share a treasured memory, visit: Brendesefuneralhome.com