Mary Marino

Mary Marino was born on Valentine’s Day in 1923 in the city of Akron Ohio. She was the daughter of Michael and Marie Vaccaro and was one of four children. She had a sister, Ange, and two brothers, Tony and Frank. At an early age, she showed great talent in art and, after graduating from high school, was awarded a full scholarship to attend art school. She decided to stay home and help the family due to an ailing father. In her early twenties, she helped the war effort and worked at Firestone as a riveter. Yes, she was Rossie the riveter. However, after discovering her talent at art, she was later transferred to the art department at Firestone. In 1945 at the age of 25 she married Tony Marino. Mary and Tony remained married until 2006 when Tony passed away. They had four children, Anthony, Michael, Cara and Marie. For the most part they raised their children in a suburb of Akron, Talmadge, Ohio. They built their own home in Talmadge on 2 acres and raised their four children there. For the children, it was a wonderful place to grow up, and Mary was a great homemaker. She was friends with all of the neighbors, and she attended a monthly “club” meeting with the housewives who lived on her street. She was always there for her kids; she was loving and was a great person to consult with to get advice. In 1963, Tony changed careers from being an aerospace mechanical draftsman to being a building contractor. At this time, he moved the family to Santa Barbara, California where he began his contracting career. He did quite well in this business, and eventually Mary and Tony started an apartment rental business which paid for both of their retirements. Their life in Santa Barbara was filled with fun with many dinners with family and friends. Mary and Tony loved to golf together. She was legendary for her excellent pasta sauce, and her gourmet pizza. When Mary’s children were out of the house, she began a career in the Santa Barbara School District where she worked in a school cafeteria. She has three grandchildren, Christina, Caroline, and Cami, and she has two great grandchildren, Anthony and Cecilia. During all her life she continued to paint beautiful paintings with subjects including landscapes, city scapes, portraits, and abstracts. In 2006 after 61 years of marriage, her husband Tony passed away. Mary remained strong and single handedly ran their apartment business without outside help until the age of 97. At the age of 95 she passed her California drivers exam and right now she has a valid California drivers license. Mary continued to golf weekly with a group of friends up until the age of 97. When she was 86 years old she even got a hole in one during one of her weekly games. She was an amazing woman, and she lived a long and worthwhile life. At 97 she contracted dementia which ended her life at the age of 99.

Mary Marino

February 14, 1923 - March 15, 2022