Evelyn Helen Caruso

Evelyn, a native Bostonian, moved to Tucson in 1996 with her youngest son, Joseph D. Caruso. Her older son Ralph A. Caruso had moved out West years earlier, and she was ready to leave the harsh winters behind and enjoy the desert weather. Her daughter, Ann T. Spellman, joined them in 2006.

In addition to her daughter and sons, Evelyn is survived by four granddaughters and their spouses: Gina Savignano and her husband, Michael, of Bridgewater, Mass.; Debra Cloherty and her husband, Gary, of Jacksonville, Fla.; Karyn Spellman, of Reisterstown, Md.; and Kristine Laut and her husband, Joseph, of Clifton Heights, Pa. She is also survived by five great-grandsons: Nicholas Savignano, of Bridgewater, Mass.; Ryan Cloherty, of Jacksonville, Fla.; Ryan Harlow, of Clifton Heights, Pa.; and Nicholas and Kyle Ash, of Reisterstown, Md.; and three great-granddaughters: Meaghan Cloherty, of New York City, Maria Savignano, of Bridgewater, Mass.; and Madeleine Ash, of Reisterstown, Md.

Evelyn was born on May 12, 1920, to Girilio and Maddalena Isotti, who immigrated to Boston from Italy years earlier. She grew up speaking fluent Italian, along with her older brothers, Joseph and Eugene.

She led a quiet life in Tucson after years of working as a nurse’s aide back in Boston. Always a gardener, she learned how to tend to the lemon trees and rose bushes in her new desert yard. She appreciated the new landscape, sitting on the deck in view of the mountains while she wrote letters, read, worked on crossword puzzles, and sipped tea.

“Nana,” as she was known to her grandchildren and great-grandchildren—and Nana RuRu to the one great-granddaughter who couldn’t keep her Nanas straight and pronounce “Caruso” when she was little—sent everyone regular letters, which included helpful hints and coupons carefully clipped from newspapers and magazines. She would apologize for her handwriting, which had developed a deep slant after she broke her wrist decades earlier.

She also kept in touch with her lifelong friends back East, sharing news about her family and looked forward to hearing about how her friends’ families had grown. When she couldn’t travel anymore, she would still want to see her grandkids and great-grandkids—and she could with the help of FaceTime bridging thousands of miles and the time change.

Everyone who knew Evelyn loved her and described her the same way: that she was one of the kindest, sweetest people they had ever known. She took a sincere interest in knowing who someone was, remembering birthdays, anniversaries, personal stories, and what connected the two of them together. All who loved and knew her will miss her greatly.