Finita Marotta

Finita Marotta was born on April 25, 1942 in Marzi, Consenza, Italy and passed away on November 25, 2022 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada at the age of 80 years.

She has been reunited in Heaven with her beloved husband Mario Salvatore Marotta

She is now resting peacefully with her husband and her parents, Luigi and Maria.

Loving mother of Carmela (Joe) and Mary

Cherished Nonna of Sofia

She is the beloved sibling of predeceased brother Armando (Klara), Brother Frank (Elena), Sister Giselle.

Finita will be missed by her Sister in Law predeceased Catarina (predeceased Antonio), Brother in Law predeceased Domenic (predeceased Esterina), Vanda (Predeceased Alfredo). She will also be missed by her brother in Laws, Osvaldo (Ilma), and Antonio (Marisa).

Finita Marotta will be dearly missed by her all of her cousins, nieces, nephews and their families.

Her family in Italy, Australia, United States of America, and Canada will all be missing her very much.

She will be forever remembered, loved and missed by all of her family and friends.

Family and friends may visit at the Jerrett Funeral Home, 1141 St. Clair Ave. W. (1 block east of Dufferin) on Tuesday, November 29, 2022 from 4:00pm-9:00pm

The Funeral Mass will be on Wednesday, November 30, 2022 at 11:00am at St. Clare’s Church.

PLEASE NOTE: On the morning of the Mass, we would ask that all friends go directly to the church allowing the family some private time prior to the service.

Entombment to follow at Prospect Cemetery

PLEASE NOTE: Masks are no longer required to attend indoor funeral services, for those that feel more comfortable wearing a mask, please feel free to do so.

Eulogy:

My Cousin Finitella

Rosangela Garofalo Crispino

When I think of Fi, I think of where she was born. Finitella came into the world on April 25th 1942 in the foothills of Calabria, Valierie (the Crispino home of the Cuciarunni) commune di Marzi. The paternal home was protected by the century old majestic chestnut trees and by the shrine of Santa Barbara.

She was ‘delivered’ by her Nonna Finita, who she was honourably named after. I never met Nonna Finita, however, from my understanding, she was the local midwife who brought many of our family members into this world including my Papa and Zia Pina.

Nonna Finita would incessantly be seen at the loom, weaving sheets and towels for all our family. Finitella, like our Nonna wove, not on the loom, but Finitella had a way of weaving her unique threads of magic, love and sense of fun, whenever you were in her presence.

The thread of love.

Fi’s love of Roman Catholic Church was demonstrated in her devotion to her beloved Sant’ Antonio di Padova. I remember her telling me to always pray to him to find things we had lost and Sant’ Antonio would guide us to where our items were. Many times, I have taken Fi’s advice, not only when I’d lost an item, but when I’d lost hope and courage. Sant’ Antonio was always there.

The thread of faith.

If you were having a bad day, it ended soon after encountering her as she would immediately whisk away any sadness by her infectious sense of humour, reminding you that life presents us all with many trials and challenges which we need to approach head on.

The thread of courage.

She, like her father, my dear Zio Luigi would ‘turn ugly’ (se consava brutto) if he found out who had harmed any of his family and would threaten to track them down and ‘sort them out’. This is where Fi, like her father, demonstrated loyalty.

The thread of loyalty.

Fi was a daughter, a granddaughter, a sister, a niece, a mother, a grandmother, a wife, a mother in law, daughter in law, a sister in law, a work colleague and a friend. But most importantly, she was my cousin, who I respect and love so deeply. Words cannot express how much I will personally miss her, as I know you all will.

The thread of family.

When she married Mario Marotta on October 13th in 1962, she continued to weave her love via the many passions she had. Early in her marriage, Mario suffered a medical condition which required a strict diet regime. It is no surprise that Mario outlived his life expectancy. This was achieved by the dedication Fi took by loving preparing meals for Mario’s specific dietary needs.

The thread of care.

She wove that thread of love and care into her two incredible daughters, Carmela and Mary, (who are like sisters to me) by encouraging and supporting them in whatever endeavour they had a passion for. Then, on January 1st, 2012, Joe and Carm were blessed with Sofia, Fi’s only grandchild. The tradition of 3 generations under the one roof continued, just like Fi’s home in Valieri and Westmount.

The thread of support.

Finitella had a passion for cooking. I’ve heard many stories where Fi, from a very young age, would cook for Nonno Saverio, Nonna Finita, Zia Maria, Zio Luigi and her siblings, Armando (Sestilio), Frank and Giselda. Once she accidently spilled the minestra on the floor but quickly rescued it so everyone could eat!

The thread of responsibility.

You always knew when Fi was at home, at Westmount. You could feel and smell the love in the freshly brewed cup of espresso that wafted from the ground floor in Zia Maria’s kitchen, throughout 198 Westmount Avenue and all the way down to Saint Claire Avenue. I remember sharing a cafeteria many mornings with her at breakfast. I was fascinated at how she could squeeze an oversized cookie into the tiny coffee cup, soaking up the delicious brew, without spilling a drop. That was breakfast. She’d then rush off to work, always with a smile.

The thread of commitment.

When Carm was away studying in Ottawa, Fi would always send her off with a package of homemade treats and cooked meals. It was any wonder that Carm’s fellow students were envious of Fi’s ‘passion’ wafting through the air, their mouths watered when she’d heat up Finitella’s homemade lasagne. They too, I’m certain, could not only smell the lasagne, but they could also smell Fi’s ‘love’ in the aroma from the lasagne.

The thread of generosity.

Fintella was known to love her gardening. Each year at spring, she lovingly planted her flowers and vegetables. I know that she and Zia Pina ALWAYS talked about how much they loved cucumbers while growing up in Valierie. They could hardly wait for harvest time to eat them by the fountain near Santa Barbara, in the shade of those majestic chestnut trees. Each year, Finitella would make passata from bushels of juicy tomatoes, for the yearly supply of sugo, as they had always done in Italia.

The tread of tradition.

After ‘graduating’ from the 5th grade, Finitella went to Zia Liza’s and learned to be a seamstress. Little did she know at that young age, how this would shape her life’s career. When she moved to Toronto, she worked for Frida’s Fashion for almost 35 years. Mary inherited this love of fashion. I remember all the beautiful evening gowns that hung in the basement at Westmount. Mary would take me down to the basement and I loved to trying them on as a young girl, pretending I was Cinderella going to the ball. I still own one of those gowns today and have worn it on many occasions.

The thread of style.

Finitella was also known to love her soccer. There was always a celebration on St Claire Avenue at the Jolly Italian Café. One of the most memorable celebrations was when The Azzuri won the World Cup for Italia.

The thread of sportsmanship.

If we take all these threads and ‘weave’ them together, we will see the tapestry that is my cousin Fi. Vale cugi.

May you rest in peace Finitella and may we be forever grateful for having known you, as we take up our ‘threads’ and weave our tapestry on the loom of life.