On the afternoon of Tuesday, November 19, 2024, Juliet Gloria Pizzuto, beloved wife, mother, and grandmother, passed away peacefully after a brief illness. She was 90 years old.
Juliet, or Gloria as she preferred to be called since a very young age, was born in New York on June 26, 1934, to her loving parents Adeline and Anthony DeMaria. Gloria was preceded in death by her beloved husband of 68 years Arthur J. Pizzuto, her adored son Arthur A. Pizzuto, her twin sister Camille Barbara Frusciante, her brother Steve DeMaria, and her parents.
She is survived by her daughter Karen Pizzuto-Sharp and her husband Owen Sharp, her daughter-in-law Sandra Diana Pizzuto, and her granddaughter, Laura Diana Pizzuto. She is also survived by many nieces and nephews.
A kind and loving woman, Gloria lived her life in a quiet, private way. She was fiercely protective of those she loved, and was a trusted and loyal friend and confidante to those in her life. She touched an unimaginable number of lives, both those she knew and those she would never meet. But the goal was the same: quietly lift people up.
Gloria: The Early Years
Gloria was born in the Bronx and raised in the Morris Park neighborhood. Along with her twin sister Barbara, she attended and received her diplomas from P.S. 83 and Christopher Columbus High School, prior to starting work down in Manhattan.
Throughout her varied careers, her administrative skills shined. As a young woman, she worked in a lower Manhattan bank. When her children went to elementary school, she worked tirelessly as an assistant to the principal, working as both the school secretary and the admin for the Presentation Sisters who taught there. She had a long and storied career with Albert Einstein College of Medicine, supporting the Ophthalmology and Neurology departments at different points in her tenure, as well as crossing into the Administration department for the Rousso Building. Her detail-oriented skills, easy nature, and sweet disposition made her treasured by those who worked by her side.
Gloria: The Importance of Family
But ultimately, Gloria’s main devotion was to her family. She and her husband Art, who passed away late last year, were snowbirds together, alternating their time between their home in Palm Harbor, Florida, and their home in the Bronx. They spent their days watching classic movies, eating out in their favorite restaurants, and spending time with friends. The last two years of Art’s life were medically challenging, and Gloria spent every day by his side, encouraging and cheering his successes and helping him through the hard days.
Her love for her children, Artie and Karen, their spouses Sandy and Owen, and her grandchild Laura gave her joy and purpose. She would do anything for them, and they for her.
Her extended family, including nieces and nephews and their children, were always close on her mind. Weekly, she sent out greeting cards, remembering special days like birthdays, anniversaries and graduations. We often joked that she was singlehandedly driving the Hallmark stock price up daily!
Gloria’s Interests:
In her younger days she was artistically-inclined, exploring the world of charcoals and pastels, ink drawings, oil paintings, ceramics, and even dabbling in fiber arts, like embroidery, crocheting, and sewing her own clothes. She and Art spent time supporting their local charity events, even brushing up on their ChaCha lessons with local instructor Ed Samborski!
Gloria also had a passion for cooking, with family favorites like her legendary Italian cheesecake, her delectable Lasagna Bolognese, and the featherweight-light, melt-in-your-mouth manicotti that always graced our holiday table. In later years, she traded in her chef’s apron for nights on the town, allowing others to nourish her. Favorite haunts included Pasta Pasta and their Angel Hair Primavera, enjoying Mezzaluna at Carrabba’s down in Florida, or she could be found sharing “The Cheese Wheel” at Tuckahoe’s Angelina’s with Art. A nice Pistachio soft serve with caramel sauce from Carvel, or a sfogliatelle from Scaglione’s Bakery would also hit the spot! And let’s not forget a blackberry sangria from Carrabba’s to top it off! Buon mangiare!
In her later years, Gloria passed the time with nightly Jeopardy (she couldn’t take a liking to Ken Jennings, but she loved the annoying contestant James!), she enjoyed NY-based crime dramas like Blue Bloods and Law and Order SVU, and she never failed to chuckle at Mel Brooks, Jackie Mason and “It’s A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World”!
Gloria loved to reminisce, and on one of our last strolls through her memories we remembered
— that Thanksgiving where she was cooking the turkey and she singed off both of her eyebrows;
— that one casino visit with sister Barbara and her husband, where he unexpectedly lost more than coins at the slot machine;
— how she didn’t know how to make coffee at home until the mid-1980s;
— how she and her dear friend Eileen mistakenly thought they’d make a fortune selling copper kitchen products in the early ‘70s;
— how current technology hated her (and the feeling was mutual!);
— and how her favorite thing to buy, hands-down, were shoes and purses.
Gloria: Her Faith, Her Community and Her Advocacy
Gloria has been a longtime parishioner of St. Clare of Assisi Church in the Bronx, as well as a dedicated parishioner of St. Luke the Evangelist Church in Palm Harbor, Florida.
Her devotion to her communities and the greater good was evidenced through her and Art’s generous and quiet support of those organizations and charities that were important to them. It is our family’s intent to continue this legacy, in honor of their generous spirit of giving. If you are interested in making a donation in Gloria’s name, a few of those organizations are listed below.
Gloria’s Services
Visiting will be Monday from 3-7pm at Joseph A. Lucchese Funeral Home, 726 Morris Park Avenue, Bronx. Family and friends wishing to attend the visitation virtually may do so by clicking the following link at any time during the visiting hours Pizzuto Virtual Visitation Mass of Christian Burial will be Tuesday at 11am at St. Clare’s Church, 1918 Paulding Avenue, Bronx. Entombment will follow at Gate of Heaven Cemetery, 10 West Stevens Avenue, Hawthorne.
We have already received a number of floral arrangements (thank you so much!)
In lieu of additional flowers, we kindly ask that you make a small donation to one of the charities that mom and dad have supported, in her name:
St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital
Tax ID: 62-0646012
Tunnel to Towers
Tax ID: 02-0554654
Padre Pio Foundation of America
Tax ID: 06-1023010
So many fond memories of the pizzuto family rest in peace Gloria God bless
Ronnie Farina Bob’s twin brother
Oh how I will miss this woman! I will always remember her smile and sense of humor. I treasure the time I got to spend with her and Art. Rest in Peace sweet Gloria.