Marietta O'Connell

Watervliet – Marietta F. O’Connell, 89, entered into eternal life on Sunday, September 23, 2018 at Brookdale at Fillmore Pond in Bennington, VT. Marietta was born in Oneonta, NY and was the daughter of the late Vincent and Anna (Perry) Farone. When she was 7 years old, Marietta’s family moved to the Port Schuyler section of Watervliet. She received her primary education at the former St. Brigid’s School in Watervliet and was a member of the graduating class of 1946 of Catholic Central High School in Troy. She later furthered her education at the Albany Business College. Mrs. O’Connell was married, in 1952, to her husband Joseph B. O’Connell at St. Brigid’s Church and together enjoyed 47 years of marriage before his passing in 1999. She dedicated the early part of her married life to raising her family. Once her children were grown, she took employment, as a bookkeeper, at St. Brigid’s Church where she worked for 25 years before retiring. Marietta served on the planning committee for her class reunions at CCHS. She enjoyed Sunday night league bowling with the Schuylerette’s and playing Michigan rummy with her family on Friday nights. In her retirement years she enjoyed the times spent with her family and took great pride in her children and their families. She loved to read, travel with family and friends and solve crossword puzzles. Marietta instilled in her children the importance of knowledge and learning as well as her love for swing dancing. She was a communicant of the former St. Brigid’s Church now the Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Watervliet. In addition to her husband, Marietta was preceded in death by her son, Steven O’Connell and her siblings, Natalie Hawley and Vincent Farone. She is survived by her children, Michael O’Connell (Ellen Mayo) of Watervliet, Brian O’Connell (Deborah Finlan) of Sudbury, VT and Anne O’Connell Ellerbusch (Frank Ellerbusch) of Warren, NJ; her daughter-in-law, Ileane O’Connell of Troy; her brother, Richard Farone of Houston, TX and 20 grandchildren, 14 great-grandchildren and several nieces and nephews. Her funeral will be held on Friday at 9:15 am from the Cummings Funeral Home, 643 Third Avenue, Watervliet and at 10 am in Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, 25th Street and 7th Avenue, Watervliet where the funeral Mass will be celebrated by the Reverend Donald Rutherford. Rite of committal and entombment will follow in St. Agnes Cemetery, Menands. Friends are invited to attend and may also visit with Marietta’s family on Thursday from 4 until 7 pm at the funeral home. Those wishing to remember Marietta in a special way may make a donation to the Steven O’Connell Scholarship Fund, c/o Michael O’Connell, 21 Granada Terrace, Watervliet, NY 12189.