Mary Ann Damonte

Mary Ann Deckman Damonte, age 92, passed away on November 16, 2023 in Temple Terrace, Florida. She was born February 19, 1931, at Bellevue Private Hospital in Camden, New Jersey. Her father, Joseph Earl Deckman, was 27 and her mother, Marion Cecelia Conroy, was 24. She married Wendell James Damonte on July 5, 1952, in Gwynedd Valley, Pennsylvania; they had 4 children. A Celebration of Life Service will be held at 11 am, Thursday, December 28th at Temple Terrace Presbyterian Church.

She is survived by her son Jonathan Damonte and wife Donna, daughters Elizabeth Giles and husband Dennis, Mary Ann Walker and husband Graham, and Amie Damonte, 8 grandchildren, and 7 great-grandchildren.

While Mary Ann was a child, the Deckman family lived in Haddonfield, New Jersey and Blue Bell & Ambler, Pennsylvania. She grew up at “Holly House” in Blue Bell. They would also spend vacations at the family cabin along the banks of Lake Atsion, New Jersey. Mary Ann was Baptized at the Episcopal church in Cheltenham, Pennsylvania on April 11, 1936. She was a Girl Scout in Ambler Troop 108. She attended Ambler High School. In 1947 she was chosen as the solo performer on stage for the Lullaby and Sabre Dances of the Khachaturian Gayne Ballet Suite, accompanied by the Philadelphia Armenian Dance Group and the famed Philadelphia Orchestra. She earned a BA at Wilson College and studied at the Connecticut College School of Dance in New London, CT. She earned a Masters Degree in Education at the University of South Florida. She was preceded in death by her father, Jospeh, passed away on June 7, 1960, in Blue Bell, Whitpain, Pennsylvania, at the age of 57 and Her mother, Marion, passed away on September 17, 1980, in Gainesville, Florida, at the age of 74.

Mary Ann, at age 21, married the love of her life, Wendell James Damonte, on July 5, 1952 at the Church of the Messiah in Gwynedd Valley, Pennsylvania. They were wed while he was home on leave before he shipped out to Korea. Mary Ann would stay with her parents in Ambler until his return on Christmas Eve, 1953. Over the next eight years they had four children, Jon, Liz , Mimi, and Amie. Jim worked for Sinclair Oil and the family moved around living in Tennessee, Maryland, Georgia, and Florida. Jim and Mary Ann built a home at River Landing in Temple Terrace, Florida in 1983, where they remained. They also became regular members at Temple Terrace Presbyterian Church, where Mary Ann served as an elder and on various church committees. Together they volunteered at several places including Meals on Wheels, at schools, and at the VA Hospital. Jim Damonte passed away on September 13, 2009, at the age of 80. MaryAnn and Jim modeled love and hospitality for all of their 57 years together.

Mary Ann was always a teacher. She loved dance and taught ballet. Over her many years her love of teaching influenced countless children, in and out of the classroom. While at King High School, she was named Secondary Reading Teacher of the Year for the State of Florida in 1996 and Hillsborough County Teacher of the Year in 1997. Our mother also had many hobbies including reading, swimming, knitting, gardening, cooking, painting and pottery, and sewing. She and Jim also loved to travel, and they took every opportunity to visit their children and wander the globe. Mary Ann was loved by all who knew her, and she lives on in the precious memories we share as a part of her life.