Obituary of Joanne Sciuto

Joanne Theresa (Watkins) Sciuto, a resident of Burlington for 35 years, passed away after a long battle with cancer at the Sawtelle Family Hospice House in Reading on Wednesday morning, April 26, 2006. She was 64 years old. Joanne is the loving wife of 46 years of Alfred Sciuto. Joanne was born and raised in Lawrence. She is the daughter of the late Leo and Irene Watkins. She was a 1959 graduate of St. Anne’s High School in Lawrence. Mrs. Sciuto’s life revolved around her family. She devoted her life to making a home for her husband and three children. She was very involved in her children’s lives and their many activities. She was a proud grandmother and enjoyed attending her grandchildren’s many soccer games, recitals, and other important events in their lives. Joanne was an avid golfer and was a member of the Billerica Country Club. She had just recently spent her vacation in Florida playing golf with her husband Al. She enjoyed bowling and was a member of a league for many years. She also enjoyed the many trips she took with her husband Al and her children. Joanne is the beloved wife of 46 years of Alfred Sciuto. She is the loving mother of Dr. Steven Sciuto & his partner Giovanni Capato of Methuen, Sharon & her husband Scott Winton of Townsend, and David Sciuto & his wife Gloria of Dracut. She is the sister of Donald Watkins of Red Hook, NY, Arlene Veilleux of The Villages, FL, Jacqueline Herzog of Narragansett, RI, and Richard Watkins of Londonderry, NH. She is the grandmother of Brennden, Christopher, Leanne, D.J. and Shannon Winton. Funeral from the Edward V. Sullivan Funeral Home, 43 Winn St., BURLINGTON (Exit 34 off Rt. 128, Woburn side) on Saturday, April 29 at 9 a.m. Followed by a Mass of Christian Burial in St. Margaret’s Church, 111 Winn St., Burlington at 10 a.m. Visiting hours Friday 4-8 p.m. Interment in Pine Haven Cemetery, Burlington. Memorials in Joanne’s name may be made to VNA of Middlesex-East & Visiting Nurse Hospice, 607 North Ave., Suite 17, Wakefield MA 01880. Joanne’s family would like to thank the Doctors and Staff at the Lahey Clinic, Arlington VNA & the Sawtelle Family Hospice House in Reading for their thoughtful and loving care. Remembrance of My Mother – Joanne T. Sciuto April 29th 2006 – St. Margaret’s Church By Steven R. Sciuto Words don’t always come easy when we look for a way to remember someone we love. But the answer to that dilemma came to me at the end of the first sentence…Love. What better way to remember someone than through the love shared in our lives together? My mother is best defined by her love. Her love for her parents, parents who truly set the course of unconditional love within the family. Her love for her bothers and sisters, the joy they shared in their boat trips and New Year’s Eve trips, or just being together and sharing their lives with each other. Not to mention the shopping trips when she and my aunts would do serious damage to the credit card bills. She can be defined by her love for her husband. Others have always described my parents as “best friends” who always got along so perfectly. Obviously, these people didn’t live in our house! Actually, my parents were more than best friends. They loved each other, cared for each other, supported each other, and forgave each other (Although this forgiveness didn’t extend to the golf course, because a stroke…is a stroke). She can be defined by the love for her children. I once made the mistake of trying to rank the importance of special occasions. My parent’s anniversary is tomorrow, her birthday follows three days later and then Mother’s day is the following weekend. So, all of these events occur very close together and I was trying to rate their importance. I don’t remember what I ranked first or second, but I quickly found out that my tragic mistake was not ranking Mother’s Day as first. To her, Mother’s day was the most important of all. She let into me on that one, and I won’t go into the lecture I received which started with morning sickness, labor pains, and the rest of child rearing. Our mother was a master of loving us in such a way, that each of us had a special kind of her love. We each knew that no one could be loved any more or less than the others. She taught us to love ourselves, for who we were, and who we wanted to be. As we grew and found loves to share our lives with, her heart opened and her love was unconditionally given to them as well. For that we are each grateful. She can also be defined by her love as a Memere. Grandchildren can do amazing things to a person. Often my sister, brother and I would watch my mother interact with the grandchildren. She would play on the floor with them, give them cookies, give them ice cream, and let them run amuck. And as we watched this we would think, “What have they done with our mother? Where is the woman who raised us?” It took time, but we realized that grandchildren do one thing that your own children didn’t do at that age…they go home with someone else. My mother adored her grandchildren, each and every one of them with all her heart. She loved having them for stay over, and she loved going to their soccer games and school events. She also loved her friends, friends that have been around longer than I have, many of who are here today. Whether on the golf course for a round of 9, or simply passing time with a cup of tea and sharing stories of daily life, she was about being there when needed. On behalf of my family and myself thank you for sharing in this love.