Linda F. Ferraro

Linda Ferraro, 91, passed away on March 3, 2014, of natural causes. Born on June 27, 1922, Linda was the youngest of three children born to parents, Francesco (Frank) and Pasqualina Ferraro, who had traveled from Ausonia, Italy, through Ellis Island, first to Utica and then to Rochester, to make a new life in the United States. Linda was an outstanding student, graduating from Madison High School in 1940. She devoted her life to her parents and extended family of nieces and nephews, and lived her values of kindness and caring for others. Linda’s professional career included work at Stromberg-Carlson, and later at Mobil Oil Corporation, retiring as a shipping manager. She made many sacrifices in her own life and career to care for her aging father, her beloved ‘Cicci,’ at his home until his death in 1987. Linda then volunteered thousands of hours at St. John’s Home, where she was honored as ‘Volunteer of the Year,’ and where she would later spend her own final years. Linda loved music, and was a talented flute player, playing in countless groups and ensembles, including the New Horizons Band, a flute choir and a woodwind quintet, performing at venues ranging from school auditoriums to the Eastman Theater. Her company was always in demand from her music colleagues and her circle of friends. After an injury from a fall forced her retirement from her flute groups, and her move to St. John’s, she was visited regularly by band members and friends, who formed a ‘Friends of Linda’ group to stand by her in her illness. Linda was predeceased by her much-loved brother Gabriel, her dear sister, Josephine Bianchi, of Rochester, and her nephew Don Ferraro (Brenda), and is survived by her nieces and nephews, Carl Bianchi (Gloria) of Boise ID, John Bianchi (Margaret) of Tucson AZ, Gina Metrakos of St. Augustine FL, Marianne Marsh (David), whose love, care, and visits meant everything to Linda, and Andrea Ferraro, both of Rochester. Weekly visits from her dear friend Carol Johnson brought Linda comfort and laughter in her final years. Per Linda’s wishes, a memorial mass will be celebrated at St. Theodore’s Church, 168 Spencerport Road, Gates, NY, May 8, 2014 at 9:30AM. Interment will be held privately in Riverside Cemetery. For more information and to sign Linda’s online guestbook, please visit www.MeesonFamily.com .