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April 1, 2014
Services
Funeral Services will be held on Thursday, April 3, 2014 at 9 AM from the funeral home, then to St. Mary’s R.C. Church, 17 Pompton Ave., Pompton Lakes, where at 10 AM a Funeral Mass will be offered. Interment will follow at Calverton National Cemetery, Calverton, NY.
Dorothy M. Tessoni, age 86 of Wayne, died peacefully with loving family by her bedside, early on Tuesday morning, April 1, 2014.
Affectionately known by all as “Dotty”, she was born in El Campo, TX, the eldest of three children.
One night, when Dotty was sixteen, she went to a local dance in El Campo, sponsored by the USO, an organization that sought to lift the spirits of America’s troops. She was technically too young to attend, but her adventurous spirit compelled her to try and sneak in anyway. Boy, was she glad she did! That night she met a nice young man from New York who was serving in the U.S. Army Air Force named Robert “Bob” Tessoni. After enjoying a magical evening of dancing and laughter, Dotty was convinced that Bob was the man she was going to marry. As soon as she had her eighteenth birthday, she moved to New York where she got an apartment and a job with Blue Cross Blue Shield. She and Bob continued to date and, on June 1, 1947, they joined their lives in holy matrimony at Saint Gabriel’s Roman Catholic Church in East Elmhurst, NY. After the ceremony and reception, they honeymooned at the Hotel Commodore. When they checked out of the hotel four days later, their total bill came to $24.54! Dotty and Bob travelled to El Campo, TX so that they could exchange their vows in the presence of Dotty’s family too. While there, they honeymooned a little more before returning to New York where they began their married life together.
Dotty continued to work for Blue Cross Blue Shield until she was blessed with the couple’s first child – a baby girl which they named Barbara. By the time Barbara’s little brother Robert was born, Dotty had given up her job at Blue Cross, focusing all her energy on the care of her children.
The couple purchased their first home in a new development in College Point, NY. Many young families were purchasing homes there, so it became a great place to raise their children with lots of kids in the neighborhood for Barbara and Robert to play with. Dotty and Bob developed dear friendships with many of the parents in the neighborhood too. In addition to the annual neighborhood block parties, Dotty and Bob hosted many parties of their own. Dotty would decorate the basement and many friends gathered to dance the night away to the sounds of the latest and greatest big band music. Dotty didn’t drink alcoholic beverages so, since a popular soft drink at the time was called “No Cal”, her friends referred to her as “No Cal Gal”. She was always up for a good prank and loved to make her friends laugh. For instance, sometimes she would dress up funny, blacken one of her front teeth and look into her neighbor’s windows at night till they saw her and screamed.
While raising their family, Dorothy returned to the workplace, initially getting a job with the New York City Board of Education as a lunch aid. During the span of her rewarding thirty-year career, she rose through the ranks, becoming a certified school dietitian before retired in 1990.
The family loved to vacation in the Catskills every summer in July, and Dotty and Bob enjoyed trips to the islands with friends and neighbors. The vanity license plates on their car read “BobDot” and they always got a kick out of people yelling out from their cars at toll booths – “Hi Bob and Dot!” Together they enjoyed 57 years of marriage until Bob’s passing in 2004. Dotty sold their home in College Point and moved to Wayne to be close to her daughter Barbara. She remained a resident in Wayne to the present time.
Dotty adored her three grandchildren. While working for the schools as a dietitian, she often met her daughter Barbara on her lunch hour so that she could spend some time with the grandkids. She couldn’t wait to be a great-grandmother and enjoyed the blessings of her three great grandkids, Nikki, Dylan and Logan.
Dotty was a dear woman of faith. While living in College Point, NY, she was a parishioner of St. Fidelis R.C. Church for over 50 years. Always upbeat and pleasant, Dotty never complained, often recently saying, “thank God I’m alive!” Her faith in God sustained her through the tough times like when she endured quadruple bypass surgery in 2004. She loved music and could often be heard singing throughout her day. Her warm smile and generous spirit will be dearly missed.
Dorothy is survived by her dear daughter Barbara and husband Ron Santos, her dear son Robert and wife Kathy Tessoni; her three adored grandchildren: James and wife Heidi Huggins, Laura and husband Philip Decker, and Christine and husband William Decker; three cherished great-grandchildren: Nikki, Dylan, and Logan; her brother Leroy and wife Norma Kruppa, sister Margaret Ann Day, and sister-in-law Maryann Kruppa, all of Texas. She was predeceased by her beloved husband of 57 years, Robert V. in 2004, and her brother Stanley Kruppa.
In lieu of flowers, those planning an expression of sympathy in Dorothy’s name are asked to consider a donation to Feeding America, P.O. Box 96749, Washington, D.C. 20090-6749 (www.feedingamerica.org).
If you would like to send a private condolence directly to the family use this condolence section.
Funeral Services will be held on Thursday, April 3, 2014 at 9 AM from the funeral home, then to St. Mary’s R.C. Church, 17 Pompton Ave., Pompton Lakes, where at 10 AM a Funeral Mass will be offered. Interment will follow at Calverton National Cemetery, Calverton, NY.
April 1, 2014
Services
Funeral Services will be held on Thursday, April 3, 2014 at 9 AM from the funeral home, then to St. Mary’s R.C. Church, 17 Pompton Ave., Pompton Lakes, where at 10 AM a Funeral Mass will be offered. Interment will follow at Calverton National Cemetery, Calverton, NY.
Dorothy M. Tessoni, age 86 of Wayne, died peacefully with loving family by her bedside, early on Tuesday morning, April 1, 2014.
Affectionately known by all as “Dotty”, she was born in El Campo, TX, the eldest of three children.
One night, when Dotty was sixteen, she went to a local dance in El Campo, sponsored by the USO, an organization that sought to lift the spirits of America’s troops. She was technically too young to attend, but her adventurous spirit compelled her to try and sneak in anyway. Boy, was she glad she did! That night she met a nice young man from New York who was serving in the U.S. Army Air Force named Robert “Bob” Tessoni. After enjoying a magical evening of dancing and laughter, Dotty was convinced that Bob was the man she was going to marry. As soon as she had her eighteenth birthday, she moved to New York where she got an apartment and a job with Blue Cross Blue Shield. She and Bob continued to date and, on June 1, 1947, they joined their lives in holy matrimony at Saint Gabriel’s Roman Catholic Church in East Elmhurst, NY. After the ceremony and reception, they honeymooned at the Hotel Commodore. When they checked out of the hotel four days later, their total bill came to $24.54! Dotty and Bob travelled to El Campo, TX so that they could exchange their vows in the presence of Dotty’s family too. While there, they honeymooned a little more before returning to New York where they began their married life together.
Dotty continued to work for Blue Cross Blue Shield until she was blessed with the couple’s first child – a baby girl which they named Barbara. By the time Barbara’s little brother Robert was born, Dotty had given up her job at Blue Cross, focusing all her energy on the care of her children.
The couple purchased their first home in a new development in College Point, NY. Many young families were purchasing homes there, so it became a great place to raise their children with lots of kids in the neighborhood for Barbara and Robert to play with. Dotty and Bob developed dear friendships with many of the parents in the neighborhood too. In addition to the annual neighborhood block parties, Dotty and Bob hosted many parties of their own. Dotty would decorate the basement and many friends gathered to dance the night away to the sounds of the latest and greatest big band music. Dotty didn’t drink alcoholic beverages so, since a popular soft drink at the time was called “No Cal”, her friends referred to her as “No Cal Gal”. She was always up for a good prank and loved to make her friends laugh. For instance, sometimes she would dress up funny, blacken one of her front teeth and look into her neighbor’s windows at night till they saw her and screamed.
While raising their family, Dorothy returned to the workplace, initially getting a job with the New York City Board of Education as a lunch aid. During the span of her rewarding thirty-year career, she rose through the ranks, becoming a certified school dietitian before retired in 1990.
The family loved to vacation in the Catskills every summer in July, and Dotty and Bob enjoyed trips to the islands with friends and neighbors. The vanity license plates on their car read “BobDot” and they always got a kick out of people yelling out from their cars at toll booths – “Hi Bob and Dot!” Together they enjoyed 57 years of marriage until Bob’s passing in 2004. Dotty sold their home in College Point and moved to Wayne to be close to her daughter Barbara. She remained a resident in Wayne to the present time.
Dotty adored her three grandchildren. While working for the schools as a dietitian, she often met her daughter Barbara on her lunch hour so that she could spend some time with the grandkids. She couldn’t wait to be a great-grandmother and enjoyed the blessings of her three great grandkids, Nikki, Dylan and Logan.
Dotty was a dear woman of faith. While living in College Point, NY, she was a parishioner of St. Fidelis R.C. Church for over 50 years. Always upbeat and pleasant, Dotty never complained, often recently saying, “thank God I’m alive!” Her faith in God sustained her through the tough times like when she endured quadruple bypass surgery in 2004. She loved music and could often be heard singing throughout her day. Her warm smile and generous spirit will be dearly missed.
Dorothy is survived by her dear daughter Barbara and husband Ron Santos, her dear son Robert and wife Kathy Tessoni; her three adored grandchildren: James and wife Heidi Huggins, Laura and husband Philip Decker, and Christine and husband William Decker; three cherished great-grandchildren: Nikki, Dylan, and Logan; her brother Leroy and wife Norma Kruppa, sister Margaret Ann Day, and sister-in-law Maryann Kruppa, all of Texas. She was predeceased by her beloved husband of 57 years, Robert V. in 2004, and her brother Stanley Kruppa.
In lieu of flowers, those planning an expression of sympathy in Dorothy’s name are asked to consider a donation to Feeding America, P.O. Box 96749, Washington, D.C. 20090-6749 (www.feedingamerica.org).
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