Mathilda Razzo

Mathilda (?Tillie?) Agnes Razzo, born April 17, 1922 in Enfield, Ct., daughter of the late Michael and Josephine Polec, died in her sleep on September 19th in San Francisco, Ca. She was married for 55 years to Virgilio Razzo, who died in 2008. Tillie, an affectionate, fun-loving, thoughtful, bright and warmly witty mom is grieved by her daughter and best friend, Maryanne of San Francisco and Maryanne?s husband, Eric Wells; her son, Robert, her grandson, Julian, both of San Francisco; her sisters, Malvina Murawski and Lydia Urbon of Enfield, Ct.; Stella Arrowsmith, of Los Alamos, New Mexico; ten nieces and nephews. My mom grew up in a small, tightly-knit Polish community in Connecticut where her timeless values of decency, kindness and respect were forged. Both of her parents were from Poland, so she was the beneficiary of a wealth of traditional culture.After spending the Second World War years in Connecticut helping to build airplane propellers for combat aircraft, mom studied to be a hairdresser. She met her husband, a recent émigré from Italy, in 1953, married in Connecticut the following year, and moved to California where she opened her own hairdressing business. My mom was a fantastic homemaker and great cook, as well as a savvy and talented businesswoman, having owned and operated both a hairdressing business and a yarn studio. She really loved to have a good time, always eager to just go window shopping, have a bite to eat at a coffee shop, see a nice movie. She couldn?t have been a better mother and was a close, loving, supportive and affectionate confidante.When peripheral neuropathy took away her ability to walk at age 70, she never lost her zest for living and moved bravely through life with leg braces. Even in her final years, there wasn?t a man in uniform who didn?t put a glint in her eye ? she was a consummate flirt. Medics brought her alive in more ways than one, which always both delighted and sometimes embarrassed me. Oh, mom!! I felt comforted that there were ?small things? that made her happy. She and I would always sing little, old-fashioned ditties to each other every night, up to her very last night.My husband, Eric always thought about my mom. Whenever he saw something nice, he?d say, ?Your mom would like this, right?? We did our best to make her happy and she?d often become overwhelmed with tears of joy. I can feel her near me and she will always be my guiding light. I love you mom, so much.There will be a visitation for friends and family at the chapels of Valente Marini Perata & Co., 4840 Mission Street, in San Francisco on Friday evening, September 25, from 6-9 p.m. All are invited to attend the funeral liturgy which will take place at 5:45 p.m. You are welcome to write in my mom?s guestbook, or upload any photographs you have of her. Visitations: 5:30PM to 9:00PM on Friday, September 25th, 2009 at Valente Marini Perata & Co. (map/driving directions) Services: 5:45PM at Valente Marini Perata & Co. on Friday, September 25th, 2009 (map/driving directions)

Mathilda Razzo

April 1, 1922 - September 19, 2009