Marion Virginia (Masotto) Camilleri, 96

December 26, 2023

When she passed away at 96 years of age, Marion Virginia (Masotto) Camilleri had lived a full life. She would tell everyone to dress colorfully when attending her funeral … why wear black, she’d say!

Marion was born August 14, 1927, to Frank and Rose Masotto in Brooklyn, New York. She married John Joseph Camilleri, February 27, 1949, and their honeymoon was an adventure of traveling from NYC to Long Beach, California, where they first lived together.

When asked how she thought of her life, she described herself as a devoted wife and mother who took good care of her family and home. Marion was devoted to her five children. She is survived by her children: Mariana Camilleri of Palm Desert, CA; John Camilleri of Sparks, NV; Catherine Natarian (Tom) of Lancaster, PA; Margaret Siryj (Roman) of Downey, CA and Frank Camilleri (Laura) of Prosper, TX. She loved her eight grandchildren and five great grandchildren and was like a second mom to her many nieces and nephews, all having many fond memories of her.

Marion and John had a successful family business in Bellflower, California, Spinos Italian Family Restaurant, which was a neighborhood favorite for over 20 years.

After retiring, Marion developed a love of quilting. She became involved in local quilting guilds and took pride in the many quilts she made and gifted to others. She enjoyed learning about art and taking painting classes. She was a good cook and loved good food. She often joked that her favorite part of attending art classes was getting to enjoy the delicious potluck dishes and desserts brought in by classmates. She loved socializing with classmates, enjoying the artistic camaraderie as they all shared their work. She loved to swim and truly loved the water. Tending her garden was a great joy, and she doted over her old fragrant roses, especially one very tall yellow one, yellow being her favorite color.

She made friends with all her neighbors, and wherever she went, she enjoyed meeting people. During periods of health challenges requiring rehabilitation stays, the staff always spoke of her fondly describing how much they enjoyed the conversation and playful jesting they all shared.

Marion was a deeply religious woman and was devoted to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary. In her last couple of years, she kept in touch with family via zoom calls where she prayed with some of her children, nieces, nephews, and granddaughters. She very much missed her husband, John, who preceded her in death in 2009, and looked forward to joining him once again in heaven.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Marion’s name to St. Jude Children’s Hospital, 262 Danny Thomas Place, Memphis, TN 38105, www.stjude.org or to Our Lady of Guadalupe Monastery, 142 Joseph Blane Rd., Silver City, New Mexico 88061, www.Ourladyofguadalupemonastery.com.

May she Rest in Peace.