Venice Cecelia Partenope

01/12/2004

Venice Cecelia Partenope, 101, of 10 Hospital Ave. died yesterday at Sweet Brook Care Centers in Williamstown, where she was admitted July 21, 2003, after a short illness. A longtime community and political activist, she was an organizer of the Berkshire County chapter of the National Foundation of Muscular Dystrophy in 1957, and served as its first vice president. On her 100th birthday, Mayor John Barrett III officially proclaimed it Venice Partenope Day. Former Acting Gov. Jane M. Swift issued a proclamation in her honor and Pope John Paul II issued an Apostolic Blessing for her. Born at home, 10 Hospital Ave., on Nov. 30, 1902, daughter of Vincenzo and Vincenza Maddalena Partenope, she was a 1921 graduate of Drury High School. She also graduated from Washington University School of Nursing in 1925. A decorated Army veteran of World War II, she enlisted in the Nurse Corps in 1943 as a second lieutenant and served at Lovell General Hospital at Fort Devens, Camp Edwards and the 359th Station Hospital in Puerto Rico. She also served in Trinidad and the British West Indies until her discharge in 1945 with the rank of first lieutenant. Miss Partenope worked as a private-duty nurse for many years, including for Sterling Clark, founder of the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, until retiring in 1975. From 1926 to 1943, she had worked at the former Putnam Memorial Hospital in Bennington, Vt., where she was named director of nurses in 1942, and, following the war, at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston for a year. She was a lifelong communicant of St. Anthony's Church. She was a longtime member and past president of Sons of Italy Lodge 704, where she also was a delegate to state and national conventions. She joined Emblem Club 20 in 1946 and served as a trustee and was named Member of the Month in May 2001. On June 18, 2002, the Massachusetts State Association of Emblem Clubs honored her as the state's oldest member. A member of the Republican Party and the Republican City Committee, she served many times as a delegate to the state conventions. She also was a member of the Republican National Committee and the Republican Presidential Task Force. She was a national member of the Metropolitan Opera Guild and a former member of the Massachusetts Nursing Association and the Berkshire County Republican Association, which honored her on April 7, 1978, as North Berkshire Republican of the Year, and the Frank R. Stiles Post 125 American Legion. She was a supporter of the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art and encouraged support of its programs. She leaves a sister, Catherine Partenope, with whom she resided. FUNERAL NOTICE -- The funeral for Venice C. Partenope, RN, who died Jan. 12, 2004, will be conducted with military honors Friday, Jan. 16, at 9:15 at FLYNN & DAGNOLI-MONTAGNA HOME FOR FUNERALS, Central Chapels, 74 Marshall St., followed by a Liturgy of Christian Burial at 10 at St. Anthony of Padua Church. Burial will follow in Southview Cemetery. Calling hours will be Thursday, Jan. 15, from 4 to 7 at the funeral home. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations are suggested for St. Anthony's Church or any charity of the donor's choice through the funeral home. She was predeceased by six brothers and four sisters.

Obituaries

Celebrating Lives & Legacies

Venice Cecelia Partenope

Memorials

A remarkable woman and remarkable wife.9tt2
from: C vincelette	on: 02-28-2014