Funeral mass was celebrated March 7 at Our Lady of Mercy Church for Josephine Cassaro, a lifelong resident of Jersey City. She passed away March 2 at home surrounded by her family. The daughter of Oscar and Isabel Covello, she was born in Jersey City in 1919. From her early years on the Snyder High School swim team and also as an original organizer of their football boosters squad she has been an active member of the Jersey CIty community.
Having attended Drake Business College, she was employed as an office manager and bookkeeper for several prominent Jersey City firms as well as her husband’s construction company. Josephine continued to work well into her 80’s.
She and her late husband, Louis, were married in 1943 and continued their family’s tradition of service and civic duty. For many years they served their neighborhood as committeeman and woman. In 1984, she was named Mayor for a Day by Mayor Gerald McCann in appreciation for her service. In 1994, because of her dedication and service to the Italian American Community, Mayor Bret Shundler named her Italian American Elder Stateswoman of the Year.
She was a trustee of the Dante Alighieri Society having served as President as well as Treasurer, Secretary and longtime Chairwoman of the Education Community She also served as secretary of UNICO. Mayor Jeremiah Healy proclaimed her Hudson County 2009 Senior Citizen of the Year. She enjoyed senior citizens meetings and especially looked forward to the activities of the University Club of which she was a member. She was an active communicant of Our Lady of Mercy Church.
She was predeceased by her husband, Louis her sister, Pauline Hanifin and her brothers Anthony, Oscar and Aristide Covello and all of her in-laws except sister-in-law, Regina Covello. Left to cherish her memory are her children, her son, Sal Cassaro and his wife Patricia, her daughter Roe and her husband John Ruane and her daughter Lisabeth and her husband Joe Cullum, her grandchildren, Kimberly Ruane Fox and her husband Ryan, Jennifer Cassaro Stern and her husband Rob, Lisa and Kristin Ruane and Michele and Christopher Cassaro. Also greatly saddened to lose their great-grandmother are Joseph and Gianna Stern and Charlotte Fox. She will be missed by her many nieces and nephews with whom she maintained a close and relationship as well as her friends and all of those lucky enough to know her. Services arranged by the Greenville Memorial Home, 374 Jersey City.