Francesca Russomanno

November 10, 1928 - March 7, 2022

Francesca Russomanno, 93, entered eternal life peacefully on Monday, March 7, 2022, at Albany Medical Center with her loving family by her side. Born in 1928 in Cardinale, Calabria, Italy, she was the daughter of the late Nicola and Chiara (Sestito) Mantello. She was the beloved wife of the late Bruno Russomanno who passed away in 1979. Francesca and her children immigrated to America on March 13, 1965, to join her husband and son who had immigrated years earlier to help pave the way. As a young woman in Italy, she spent most of her days outdoors in "La Campagna," cultivating the land, tending to the animals and climbing the fruit trees. Nature was her love. In nature she could see and feel the presence of God. Perhaps it was her profound wonder of nature and her simple, non-materialistic way of life, that drew her to eventually join the Secular Franciscan Order. As a Secular Franciscan, Francesca will be remembered as a woman of tremendous faith, radiant joy, and generous heart, who lived the Gospel message according to the example of St. Francis. Her greatest joys in life were raising her five children and being with her grandchildren, reading scripture, sharing her faith, cultivating her beautiful terraced gardens, canning her own vegetables, and cooking for her family and friends. She had a great love of music and enjoyed singing. She had a special devotion to San Nicola di Bari (Saint Nicholas), the patron saint of her hometown, Cardinale. She lived out that devotion by being a member of the San Nicola committee in Troy, that yearly, organized a special mass and celebration for all the "paesani" of Cardinale in his honor. Francesca loved to cook for her family, especially for special holidays and feast days - "zeppole" and fish dishes for Christmas eve and "cuzzupa" for Easter. She believed in growing her own food in her garden, and if that wasn't enough, then off she went with her family to pick her own at local farms - picking as many as 15 bushels of tomatoes to supply her family with tomato sauce for the year. It should come as no surprise that we never ran out. After her beloved Bruno passed away, Francesca went to work to support her family at Marvin Neitzel Corp. for a number of years in the early eighties, and then continued working in the R.P.I. freshmen dining hall for over 20 years until she suffered a stroke at the age of 78. In the remaining 15 years after her debilitating stroke, which left her unable to speak, Francesca continued to be a source of inspiration to others, by bearing her suffering with humility and patience. She believed, like St. Francis of Assisi, that God works through our suffering, teaching us to love, to trust, and to bear our burden with humility and patience - and, of course, to "preach the Gospel at all times, and when necessary, use words." Francesca is survived by her children, Dominic (Eleanore) Russomanno, Rose (Alfred) Russomanno-Censullo, Ornella (John) Quinn and Maurizio Russomanno; and her grandchildren, Dominic (Danielle) Russomanno, Catherine Russomanno, Michael Russomanno, Johnny Quinn and Patrick Quinn. She is also survived by many beloved nieces, nephews, and cousins that remained close to her heart throughout her life. In addition to her husband, Francesca was predeceased by her beloved daughter, Graziella Russomanno; sisters, Lisa Mantello, and Teresa Costa; and brothers, Cesare Mantello, Michele Mantello, Nicola Mantello and Francesco Antonio Mantello. Francesca's family would like to thank the doctors, nurses and staff of the Neurology/Stroke Unit at Albany Medical Center that took such compassionate care of her in her last days. They were truly a blessing to her and her family. We would also like to thank the very loving and caring staff of the Eddy Cohoes Daybreak for their many years of friendship and kindness to Francesca. They always brought her joy and had a special place in her heart as they will continue to have a special place in ours. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated for Francesca on Saturday, March 12, at 11 a.m. in Our Lady of Victory Church, 55 N. Lake Ave., Troy with Father Randall Patterson and Father Anthony Ligato presiding. Calling hours will precede the Mass from 8:30 - 10:30 a.m. at the church. Burial will follow the Mass in St. Mary's Cemetery in Troy. Those wishing to remember Francesca in a special way may make memorial contributions in her name to Catholic Charities of the Dioceses of Albany at ccrcda.org, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital at stjude.org or EWTN Global Catholic Television Network at EWTN.com