STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — In 1970, Maria Mattarella and her husband, Francesco, moved to New York City from Sicily in pursuit of the American Dream. But they were not planning to stay forever. Their intention was always to return to Italy after a few years. That plan was derailed when their three-year old son, Salvatore, was diagnosed with liver cancer.
“The best doctors are here,” said Mattarella’s son, Vincent Mattarella. “If the family had stayed in Italy, he would not have survived; he would have passed. When Sal got sick, the doctors told my mother he would be under their care and treatment for the next 10 years. So that idea of going back to Italy was not possible.”
Mattarella stayed in New York City, eventually settling with her family in Manor Heights. She died on March 13 at the age of 82. The cause of death was aspiration pneumonia.
Maria Mattarella and her husband, Francesco.Courtesy of the Mattarella family
She was born in Mazara del Vallo on June 28, 1943 to Vincenzo and Giuseppina Papa. She was the fourth out of five sisters.
The family only had enough money to send one of their daughters to school. “There was no financial assistance or loans at the time,” said her daughter, Marilena Taglio.
They chose one of Mattarella’s older sisters to attend nursing school. Mattarella would read her sister’s nursing textbooks and dream of going to college herself.
Instead, she left school during junior high and started working at her father’s grocery store. “She was very good with math and inventory, so she did a lot of that up in the store,” Taglio said.
Maria Mattarella and her husband, Francesco.Courtesy of the Mattarella family
She attended trade school, learning how to be a seamstress. She learned everything about the trade, specializing in men’s clothing.
As a teenager, she met her future husband, who worked at a welding business near her father’s grocery store. The pair got married when she was 21.
“She had her first two children and worked as a seamstress. She made clothes for relatives, her friends, and herself,” Taglio said.
Her journey to America
Her husband’s brother was a longshoreman living in Brooklyn and encouraged Mattarella and her husband to relocate to New York City. When she was 27, the family boarded a ship, the Leonardo da Vinci, which landed in New York City Harbor on December 17, 1970.
Pictured are Maria Mattarella (far left) with her sisters and parents.Courtesy of the Mattarella family
The family settled in Brooklyn and had two more children. Mattarella got a job as a seamstress in a factory. She made high-end women’s apparel. “She worked nine-to-five, Monday through Friday,” Taglio said. “During the weekends she would work at home on her own business, making alterations and sewing for other people.”
Her husband got a job as a dishwasher at a catering hall in Brooklyn. Over the next five years, he worked his way up to becoming a chef.
In 1985, she and her husband purchased a pizzeria in Freeport, Long Island. Their eldest son made the pizzas, Francesco prepared the other fare, and Maria Mattarella ran the register and took care of the finances.
“My brother decided he didn’t want to do it anymore, so they had to sell it. But my mom and dad would have loved to continue working there. That was their place, and it was very successful,” Vincent Mattarella said.
The Mattarella family: Francesco, Maria, Vincent, Marilena, John Joseph and Salvatore.Courtesy of the Mattarella family
Mattarella went back to working as a seamstress. “She specialized in evening gowns and wedding dresses,” Taglio said.
In 1996, the Mattarellas bought a two-family home in the Manor Heights neighborhood of Staten Island. Maria Mattarella continued to commute to Brooklyn to the family-owned factory where she worked as a seamstress.
“We had our traditions. Every night we ate dinner together at home. Every Sunday in the summer we went to the beach. Life was about family. We found happiness amongst each other,” Vincent Mattarella said.
Over the years, the family considered moving back to Italy several times but always chose to stay. Mattarella learned English and took her civic duties seriously. “She always voted and loved being a citizen,” Vincent Mattarella said.
The pizzeria owned by the Mattarellas.Courtesy of the Mattarella family
“She was courageous and confident,” Vincent Mattarella said. “She had the courage to take anything on. She had confidence that everything would work out. She was never afraid of anything. Her faith in God contributed to her confidence.”
“With all the different challenges she faced, never did she ever waver,” Vincent Mattarella said. “She just kept pushing forward. She persevered. She put an imprint on all of us to never give up on things, to always hope.”
Mattarella is survived by her children, Vincenzo, Marilena, John Joseph, and Salvatore, 14 grandchildren, and 5 great grandchildren.
Maria Mattarella (seated) with her grandchildren.Courtesy of the Mattarella family