Marisa Parish November 11, 1952 - October 13,
2025
Marisa Lou Parish of
Lynbrook, NY was born on Veteran's
Day and passed on Columbus Day,
each befitting of her lifelong
patriotic spirit. She was born in
Cheyenne, Wyoming to parents Raoul
from Idaho and Bianca from Italy,
and that heritage provided the
source of Marisa's great love for
both the American West and Italy,
and more particularly Naples, her
mother's birthplace. Marisa and
her older siblings Patrick and
Pamela would set sail for Japan
where the USAF assigned her father
during the Korean War. Marisa and
Pam delighted in wearing their
kimonos and shuffling about in
wooden slippers. Their younger
sister Lisa joined the gang and
the family returned to the States,
eventually moving to Portsmouth,
NH., where younger brothers Lee
and Lynn were born, along with
Marisa's love for baseball and the
Boston Red Sox. Her father's
retirement from active duty landed
Marisa and family in Rome, NY,
where she attended local schools
including Rome Free Academy.
Marisa was the Editor-in-Chief of
the school newspaper, lettered in
field hockey, and graduated 16 th
in her class of more than 500
students. She was accepted at the
State University of New York,
Albany where she earned a Bachelor
of Arts followed by a Master's in
Library Science. Marisa's love for
Italian literature soon earned her
a children's librarian post at the
inaugural Enrico Fermi Italian
Cultural Center, Belmont Branch,
NY Public Library. Marisa became
known for enchanting children at
story hours and creating fabulous
display cases. During her 32-year
career, she was promoted to
Regional Branch Librarian at
Belmont. Her passion for promoting
and celebrating Italian language
and culture continued after
retirement as a sister of the
Lynbrook Per Sempre Lodge, Order
Sons & Daughters of Italy in
America, and her support of the
Italian Teachers Association of
Central New York (ITACNY).
Meanwhile, Marisa met her life
love John Vespertino, with whom
she shared over thirty years of
love and companionship. Together
they merged their true love and
appreciation across music genres
as diverse as opera, jazz, and
Neapolitan songs. Marisa met the
onset of illness in her usual
indefatigable way, beating the
odds for over 25 years, and those
that loved Marisa knew she would
never let it define her, nor would
it ever win, because of her faith
that God would call her in his
time. Marisa is survived by her
partner John, her loving sisters,
Pamela A. Parish and Lisa M.
Ellis, brothers Lee A. Parish and
Lynn R. Parish, sisters-in-law
Rita G. Parish and Julie McCoy,
John's brothers Fabrice, Joe,
Frank, and Salvatore and their
spouses, nephew Nicholas, nieces
Cristina and Rachel, grand-nephews
Tyler and Dean, goddaughter
Teresa, and she is predeceased by
her parents and brother Patrick.
To send flowers to the family or
plant a tree in memory of Marisa,
please visit our floral store.
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I
remember Marisa as soft-spoken, yet
confident, pretty and sweet. A
memorable person. - Linda Rossi
Marisa was often at my house working with my
father and uncle at the print shop on
the RFA newspaper. She was smart
and such a sweet soul. I had her
mother for Italian….sadly she said I
spoke perfect Spanish! So sad to hear
of Marisa’s passing. - Susan Spadafora
Marisa and I were in
Italian class together at RFA for
several years (up to Italian IV). Her
mother (Bianca) was the Italian
teacher. Of course, Marisa was the
better student. I was even a bigger
goof back then, and a wayward hippy.
Mrs. Parish would worry over me,
especially after an acid flashback or
two in her class. I still remember
Marisa, Joe Griffo and a few other
classmates looking at me funny as Mrs.
Parish stirred me from the deep.
I wasn't her best student, but became
like a son to her. It started from the
first day of class, when I read a
passage in Italian, and she loved it.
She wanted me to be so much more than
I was at the time. I thought of her
recently, at the Poster House in New
York, which had an exhibit of
Mussolini's fascist propaganda. Mrs.
Parish would always defend Mussolini,
since he did so much to unify Italy
and improve conditions there before
the war.
Marisa and I talked about those days
lovingly at a couple of our reunions.
Together, we could recite Dante's
inscription on the gates of hell,
which ended in: "Lasciate ogni
speranza voi ch'entrate", which
translates as "Abandon all hope ye who
enter". Knowing Marisa, she doesn't
have to worry. She's in good hands
now. - Phil Domenico
May Marisa's
memory be eternal. We may have been in a
couple of classes together. It's all a
blur now - Steve Miroy
