Maria Nicola Spano

Maria knew that no one can be well until they have eaten well. From her kitchen she showed her love, and there was never a shortage of love to give. If her gift to you was a warm meal, your gift to her was simply enjoying it. For days after, she reveled when someone enjoyed her cooking. But this was merely a reflection of her love for her family. She left 9 of her 10 siblings in Italy when she immigrated to the US as a young woman making her appreciate her own family all the more. In fact, she moved from Brooklyn to Riverside just to be closer to her sister, Rosa. As for her husband and children; they were, quite simply, the center of her universe. She left them with more than her recipes though. Having lived through WWII in Italy, started a new life in America and beaten breast cancer, she instilled in them her unwavering strength.rnAfter knowing a man named Frank for several years, they wed in 1965. Before his passing in 1998, their lives were blessed by their children: Antonietta Spano of Palmyra and Vincent Spano of Riverside. She is also survived by her siblings in Italy: Teresa, Sabina, Antonietta, and Benito as well as by her sister-in-law Guiseppina and her many nieces, nephews, great-nieces and nephews and great-great nieces and nephews.rnCome celebrate Maria’s 79 wonderful years (Oct. 19, 1932-Feb. 21, 2012) Friday from 7-9 PM and Saturday from 9-10 AM at the Sweeney Funeral Home, Riverside. Mass of Christian Burial Saturday 10:30 AM at Jesus the Good Shepherd Church (St. Peter’s Site) Riverside. Interment at St. Peter’s Cemetery. In lieu of flowers memorial gifts may be made to the American Breast Cancer Foundation 1220 B East Joppa Rd., Suite 332, Baltimore, MD 21286.rn