Mary A. Palmisano

Mary (Maria) Palmisano was born on August 3, 1937 in her family’s apartment on Huron Street in the near west side of Chicago. She was the fourth of five children born to Vito and Angela (nee Recchia) Agostino and the first of their children to be born in the United States.
Mary grew up in the Lawndale neighborhood where she attended Ryerson Elementary School and Austin High School (class of 1955). She started working while in high school at the popular Alamo Food Shop, an experience that she remembered fondly for her entire life, on Chicago Avenue. After graduation, she worked as a secretary at the historic home office of Sears Roebuck and Company on Homan Avenue in Chicago, following in the footsteps of her older sisters.
In 1958, Mary met the love of her life, Mike (Michele) Palmisano. The chance meeting occurred when Mike gallantly retrieved a hat for Mary, which blew away from her on the way to church. The couple were wed on August 29, 1959, at Our Lady of the Angels Church on Iowa Street in Chicago, and were married for almost 67 years. Moving to Franklin Park in 1961, Mary and Mike raised three sons and enjoyed entertaining family and friends for many special occasions and holidays. Mary returned to work in 1975 shortly after their third son entered school. She spent many happy years working in the administrative offices of Osco Drug Company on Cullerton Avenue in Franklin Park. Mary also made many life-long friendships while working there.
Everyone who met or knew Mary described her as one of the sweetest people that they had ever met or known. Mary regularly extended herself with acts of kindness to make others happy and prioritized staying in touch with family and friends. In their retirement, Mary and Mike felt privileged to travel within and outside the Country, including to some special places such as Italy, Jerusalem, and Egypt. In her free time, Mary enjoyed an occasional little jaunt to the casino, but her primary interest continued to be her family.
Mary was a devoted wife of 67 years to Mike (Michele) Palmisano; loving mother of Michael (Linda) Palmisano, Jr., John (Lori) Palmisano, and Anthony Palmisano; adoring grandmother of Jessica (Aaron) Heinrich, Emily Palmisano, Abigail Palmisano, Zachary Palmisano, and Caitlin (Kevin) Andersen; proud great grandmother of Cameron; dear sister of the late Gaetano (Virginia) Agostino, the late Antoinette (Sol) Del Re, Elizabeth (Joseph) Bellisario, and of Theresa Agostino; fond aunt of many nieces and nephews.
Visitation: Wednesday, September 30 from 4:00 pm to 8:00 pm at Countryside Funeral Home and Crematory, 950 South Bartlett Rd. (at Stearns Rd.), Bartlett, IL. Funeral: Thursday beginning at 9:30 am at Countryside Funeral Home with mass services at 10:00 am at St. Peter Damian Church, 131 S. Crest Ave, Bartlett, IL; Interment at Queen of Heaven Cemetery, 1400 S. Wolf Rd., Hillside, IL. Info.: (630) 289-7575