Robert DeBonis
His infectious laugh, outgoing spirit and engaging conversations will be missed
Robert DeBonis of Middleton, formerly of Revere, passed away surrounded by his loving family on June 11 at the age of 75.
He was a graduate of Revere High School and Salem State College and proudly served his country in the United States Army in Germany during Vietnam. He had an accomplished career that spanned 40 years in finance and banking. Robert spent the latter part of his career and retired as a respected employee of Mass Housing Finance Agency. We will all miss his infectious laugh, his outgoing spirit, and his engaging conversations. He will be sorely missed.
Born in Winthrop on Jan. 4, 1945 to the late Olivio DeBonis and Chiarina (DiCesare), he was the devoted father of Debora DeBonis of Malden and David DeBonis and his wife, Michelle of Middleton; cherished grandfather of Lucianna and Giannan and is also survived by countless family members and friends.
A Funeral Mass will be celebrated at St. Anthony’s Church, 250 Revere Street, Revere today, Wednesday, June 17 at 10 a.m. Relatives and friends are kindly invited. Private Interment. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Robert’s memory to the American Diabetes Association, 10 Speen Street, 2 nd floor, Framingham, MA 01701. For guest book please visit www.buonfiglio.com.
John Rich
Of Revere
John R. Rich of Revere, 61, passed away on June 14.
The cherished son of Mary Ann (Pokornicki) Rich and the late Peter Rich Sr., he was the brother of Peter Rich Jr. of Revere, Brian Rich of Everett, Glen Rich, Deputy Fire Chief Revere Fire Department and his wife, Bernadette of Saugus and Gary Rich. He is also lovingly survived by many nieces and nephews.
Family and friends will honor John’s life by gathering in Vazza’s “Beechwood†Funeral Home, 262 Beach St. Revere on Thursday, June18 from 9 to 11 a.m. followed by a Funeral Home Service in our Chapel of the Resurrection at 11 a.m. Interment will follow at Woodlawn Cemetery in Everett. For online guest book and directions www.vazzafunerals.com.
Alphonse Anthony Ambrosino
Retired Federal Government accountant
Alphonse Anthony Ambrosino of Winthrop passed away on March 19, 2020 after a brief illness. He was 87 years old.
He was the beloved husband of Mora A. (Bruno) Ambrosino.
Alphonse was born and raised in Revere, the son of the late Alphonse and Genevieve (D’Amore). In his later years, he moved to Winthrop and made it his new home.
A loving, generous and kind husband, brother,
father and grandfather, he was an Air Force veteran, a graduate of Bentley
College and a devout Catholic who attended church daily. He worked as an
accountant for the Federal Government for 43 years. He continued to work as an
accountant part-time for the Joseph L. Mottola VFW Post in Revere up until his
passing.
Alphonse was a devoted father to Kathy (Ambrosino) Balestrieri, son-in-law,
Drew Balestrieri and his cherished grandson, Drew Ryan Balestrieri. He was the
brother of Frederick Ambrosino (late Margaret) of Revere, Gail Hagstrom
(Donald) of Revere, and late Mary Alba, late Violet Finamore, Louis, Anthony
and Phillip Ambrosino. He is also survived and loved by many nieces and
nephews.
A Funeral Mass will be celebrated on June 20 at 10 a.m. St. John the Evangelist
Church, 320 Winthrop St., Winthrop, followed by a private burial at Woodlawn
Cemetery in Everett. Donations in his memory can be made to St. John the
Evangelist Church in Winthrop or the Veterans of Foreign Affairs.
Funeral arrangements are by the Maurice W. Kirby Funeral Home, 210 Winthrop St., Winthrop. For guestbook, please visit: www.mauricekirbyfh.com.
Carol Callahan
Graduate of RHS, Class of 1959
Carol L. (Catizone) Callahan, a lifelong Revere resident, passed away with her family by her side on June 9 at the age of 78.
Carol graduated from Revere High School, Class of 1959 and was a devoted parishioner of St. Mary’s Church. She loved all things in nature, enjoyed crafting and spending time with family and friends.
The beloved wife of the late Gerald F. “Jerry†Callahan, she was the devoted mother of John J. Callahan and his wife, Leah M. Cataldo of Wilmington, cherished Nonnie of Vincent and James Callahan, dear sister of Nicholas V. Catizone and his wife, Catherine of Revere and Joan Screnci and her husband, Thomas of Bartlett, NH. She was the loving companion of Robert Corraeo and is also survived by many loving nieces, nephews and cousins.
A Funeral Mass was celebrated in St. Anthony’s Church, Revere followed by Interment in Woodlawn Cemetery. At the family’s request, in lieu of flowers, remembrances may be made in Carol’s name to the National Shrine of St. Jude, 205 W. Monroe Street, Chicago, IL 60606. Arrangements were under the direction of Paul Buonfiglio & Sons ~ Bruno Funeral Home. For guest book please visit www.buonfiglio.com.
Grace LoGrasso
A gentle, understanding woman who always gave solid advice
Grace (Pace) LoGrasso of East Boston, formerly of Revere, California and Florida, passed away on June 7 at the age of 95 surrounded by her caring family.
Grace was a homemaker and a loving, giving mother and grandmother.
Grace was a gentle, understanding woman who always gave solid advice. She enjoyed traveling, reading, singing along to classic movies, and vividly retelling moments from her life. Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune were some of her favorite shows. She will truly be missed by all who knew her.
She was the beloved wife of the late Frank LoGrasso, devoted mother of Rosemary “Rory†Pretti and her husband, Alfred “Butchie†of Derry, NH, Suzanne LoGrasso of East Boston, David LoGrasso of Palm City, FL and the late Stephen LoGrasso; cherished grandmother of Brian LoGrasso, Vanessa Middleton, Derek Pretti, Ashley LoGrasso, Frankie LoGrasso, Krystal Almonte and the late Douglas “Dougie†Pretti; adored great grandmother of Dallas Gilbreath, Steven LoGrasso, Devin Michaud, Andrew Middleton, Avery Middleton and Dario Pretti; dear sister of the late Frank Pace, Tina Adreani, and Joseph, Joseph, Salvatore, Michael and Rosie Pace. She is also survived by many loving nieces and nephews.
A Funeral Mass was celebrated the Immaculate Conception Church, Revere on Thursday, June 11. Interment was at Woodlawn Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the American Heart Association, 300 5th Ave, Waltham, Ma 02451. For guest book please visit www.buonfiglio.com.
John Burns, Esq.
Prominent criminal defense attorney
John T. Burns, Esq., passed away on June 10, due to complications from COVID-19 after a long and agonizing battle with Alzheimer’s Disease.
John, who was born on July 14, 1940, the son of the late Kathleen (Coleman) and George V. Burns, Sr, formerly of West Roxbury and East Dennis.
He was the beloved husband of the late Roberta (Abrams). John and Roberta were married for 40 plus years, until 2008, when Roberta lost her battle with lung cancer.
John and Roberta settled in Revere (Roberta’s hometown) where they raised their family. He was the caring brother of George V. Burns Jr. of West Roxbury, Kathleen and her husband, Vincent Ryan of West Roxbury, Mary Guiney of Canton and her late husband, Ken Walsh, the late Helen Doyle and her husband, the late Joseph Doyle of Scituate and James of Pompano Beach, FL and his ex-wives, the late Janet and the late Diana. He was the loving father of George and his wife, Marifrances Morrison, of Raleigh, NC and John Jr. of Revere and he is also survived by three adoring grandchildren, Madison, Michael and John of Raleigh, NC and many loving nieces and nephews.
John, a native Bostonian, lived with his family in Hyde Park, then moved to West Roxbury. From an early age, John was always active in sports, but as a child he particularly loved basketball. It was as a result of John’s basketball exploits for his CYO basketball team at St. Thomas More in Braintree that John’s older sister Kathleen, was introduced to her future husband Vincent Ryan, John’s CYO basketball coach. (Rumor has it that the only reason Coach Vincent Ryan kept John on his team was to get a date with Kathleen).
John attended Roslindale High School, graduating in 1959. While at Rozzie High, John played football, basketball and baseball, being named as the school’s “Most Athletic†student. (It has been reported, although not confirmed, from a (mostly) reliable source that while at Rozzie High, John was a member of the military cadets, attaining the rank of captain, the key club, as well as being involved with student government.)
After graduating from Rozzie High, John traveled across the country to attend New Mexico State University-Las Cruces on a football scholarship. However, being far from home and missing his friends and family, John returned to Boston, eventually graduating from Calvin Coolidge College, located in the Beacon Hill section of Boston. After graduating from college, John attended Portia Law School (now New England Law), also located on Beacon Hill. It was while at law school that John met his future wife, and the love of his life, Roberta, who was working as a secretary at the school. Upon John’s graduation from law school, he passed the Bar Examination and in 1969 was admitted to the practice of law in Massachusetts. John went on to have a 40+ year career as a prominent criminal defense attorney, zealously (and often colorfully) representing his clients in courtrooms throughout Greater Boston.
During his many years of practice, John was not held to be in contempt of court in the great majority of his many cases. When his advocacy was needed to defend juveniles accused of committing a crime, John could be heard in the hallways of the various Suffolk County Courthouses lecturing the various juveniles to, “Remain in school,†“Stay away from drugs,†and to “Not speak to anyone.â€
In his spare time, John was an avid sports fan, with a love of all Boston’s sports teams, especially the Celtics. In fact, as a younger man, John would frequently sneak into the old Boston Garden to watch the Celtics’ games for free. John also was a fan of high school and college sports. Over the years he attended many St. Dominic Savio’s High School football games and John always looked forward to their annual Thanksgiving Day game played at East Boston Stadium.
During the 20+ years he attended Savio’s Thanksgiving Day’s games, John tirelessly worked at perfecting his Bloody Mary recipe, which he unveiled every year at the pre-game tailgate. His tailgates were always lively affairs, attended by many friends, supporters and alumni of Savio Football.
John was also a regular at Stonehill College’s football games, traveling all over New England and New York to cheer on the Chieftains (now Skyhawks). In fact, during a 4-year stretch in the mid-to-late 1980’s, John only missed two games, and that was because he attended weddings for two of his beloved nieces.
Other than competitive sports, John loved to go fishing off Cape Cod with his father and other family members. John also loved spending time on Cape Cod and long days with his family at Corporation Beach followed by a dip in Scargo Lake. John was the long-time Grand Poobah of Camp Ding-a-ling, which was an annual family gathering held on Jericho Lane, East Dennis. Funeral arrangements were by the Paul Buonfiglio & Sons-Bruno Funeral Home, Revere. Interment was in Woodlawn Cemetery. Donations may be made in John’s name to the Alzheimer’s Association, 309 Waverley Oaks Rd, Waltham, MA 02452. For guest book please visit www.buonfiglio.com.
Robert Foresta
Retired Whidden Memorial Hospital director of Pharmacy, active member of Revere KoC
Robert “Bob†Foresta, 86, passed away from fighting an illness on Saturday, March 7, 2020 at Whidden Memorial Hospital in Everett.
After Bob graduated from Revere High School, he entered the military with the US Army. During his military years, he was part of the nuclear bomb testing teams in Nevada.
After his time in the US Army, Robert went on to receive a Bachelor of Science Degree in Pharmacology from Massachusetts College of Pharmacy. He worked at the Whidden Memorial Hospital for 27 years where he was also the Director of the Pharmacy. While at WMH, he took great pride in preparing the complex medications needed for cancer patients.
Bob was also a very active member of the Knights of Columbus, Revere Council, where he participated in the weekly meetings, Tuesday night bowling league and many of the other council events.
He was a philanthropic donor supporting many charities. Bob was also a DIE HARD Red Sox fan. He watched just about every game possible and had great pride in the Sox after they ended the 86 year drought and won the World Series.
He enjoyed Big Band Swing music especially the Glen Miller Orchestra, old Italian crooner music from Mario Lanza to the Rat Pack, old western movies and TV shows, and ballroom dancing.
He was born on May 8, 1933 in Revere to Salvatore and Emily Foresta. Robert is survived by his loving wife, Barbara (Glennon) Foresta, his sisters and brothers-in-law: Phyllis and Roy Bettano, Marilyn and Dave Ellis and his brother and sister-in-law, Henry and Gloria Foresta; his children, Christopher Foresta and his wife, Gina and Robyn Foresta and her husband, Matthew Pollock; Barbara’s children, John Glennon, Laura Glennon and Judith (Glennon) Frazier; his grandchildren, Isabella, Samantha and Andraya Foresta, Otis Pollock, Jessica Vasquez, Alyssa Vozzella, Cecilia Frazier and Adrienne Morales and nine great grandchildren.
Services for Robert will be held on Friday June 19 at 11 a.m. at Saint Anthony’s Church in Revere. Private burial will be at Woodlawn Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital or the Shriners Children Research Hospital.
