1921 - 2015
COOPERSTOWN - Mrs. Bridget M. Macaluso, 94, of Cooperstown, passed away peacefully Friday morning, October 16, 2015, at Chestnut Park Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Oneonta.
Born August 11, 1921, in Hoboken, New Jersey, on a tugboat, she was the daughter of Patrick and Rita (Patterson) Bracken.
She met her husband Joseph Robert (Bob) Macaluso in the United States Navy and married him February 26, 1949, at the Church of St. Raymond in the Bronx.
Bridget was a lover of books, mysteries, words, humor, and conversation. She was a strong believer in community service. A funny, witty, loving, supportive and generous mother, grandmother and friend, she was loved and revered by all who knew her.
For many years she was employed as a secretary at the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Campus of the Veterans Administration Hudson Valley Health Care System in Montrose. A determined person, she earned her GED at the age of 62 and then earned an associate's degree in psychology.
Bridget and Bob lived in Peekskill for over twenty years before moving to Cooperstown in June 1989. She was a communicant of St. Mary's "Our Lady of the Lake" Roman Catholic Church, was a member and past president of the Mary Imogene Bassett Hospital auxiliary, and volunteered at the Susquehanna SPCA. Following Bob's death on April 23, 2001, Bridget moved to Oneonta, where she lived with her daughter, Patrice for ten years and then moved to Cooperstown with her daughter and son-in-law Roberta and Tom. The last few years she lived at Hampshire House, and then Chestnut Park Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Oneonta.
Bridget is survived by four daughters, Jean Marie Macaluso of Kingston, Roberta Hohensee and her husband, Thomas, of Cooperstown, Patrice Macaluso of Oneonta, and Margaret Williams and her husband, George, of Saugerties; two sons, Alan Macaluso and his wife, Kelly of New Paltz and Brian Macaluso and his wife, Sari, of Kingston; eight grandchildren, Haley and Kyle Hohensee, Rebecca and Joseph Williams, and Sam, Ben, Theo and Charlie Schikowitz; and five great grandchildren, twins Cosmos and Hugh, Indio, Leone and Harper.
In addition to her husband, she was predeceased by her 12 brothers and sisters, including Elizabeth, Mary, Peggy, Terry, Barney, William and John.
Family and friends are invited to a memorial gathering to be held at the Connell, Dow & Deysenroth Funeral Home, 82 Chestnut Street, Cooperstown from 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. on Friday, October 23, 2015.
As an alternative to flowers, please consider donating in memory of Bridget to the Susquehanna Animal Shelter, 4841 State Highway 28, Cooperstown, NY 13326 or Catskill Area Hospice and Palliative Care, 1 Birchwood Drive, Oneonta, NY 13820.
Arrangements are under the care and guidance of the Connell, Dow & Deysenroth Funeral Home in Cooperstown.
If you would like to send condolences to the family, send an email to Connell, Dow & Deysenroth. We will forward your comments to the family. If you would like to send flowers in memory of the deceased, contact Mohican Flowers at (607) 547-8822, or A Rose is a Rose at (607) 264-3100.
