Vera A. Belmonte , a Poughkeepsie Resident, Dies at 96

Vera A. Belmonte entered into eternal life on Friday, March 24, 2017. Vera was born on December 22, 1920 in Poughkeepsie, New York, the daughter of Joseph Piro and Anna Fahey Piro. A lifelong resident of Poughkeepsie, she was educated at St. Peter’s Girls School and Poughkeepsie High School.
On April 13, 1947, she married Daniel Peter Belmonte at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church. She was predeceased by her husband in 2011. She was a devoted wife and loving mother to their four daughters.
A devout Roman Catholic, she demonstrated her faith through works of charity and kindness toward all.
Vera was a member of the Victory Lodge, St. Ann’s Society, St. Rita’s Society, and Mt. Carmel Mother’s Club, where she gave many years of service to the organizations in volunteer and leadership positions.
Vera was a retired teaching assistant in the Poughkeepsie City School District.
She is survived by her children, Sr. Ann Daniel Belmonte, OP of Richmond, Virginia, Ann Petkovich and her husband Jerry of Suffield, CT, Mary Belmonte- Smith and her husband William of New Hyde Park, LI, and Donna Gruberg of Poughkeepsie. She is also survived by her adoring grandchildren Kimberly Dunham, Jay Petkovich, Christopher Petkovich, Jeffrey Smith, Pamela Smith, Stephen Gruberg, David Gruberg and her eight great grandchildren. Friends and family have been blessed by her enduring wisdom and generosity.
In addition to her parents and her husband Daniel Peter Belmonte, she was predeceased by her first husband, Daniel Joseph Belmonte, her brothers Anthony and Edward Piro, and her sister Antoinette Cerza.
Visitation will take place on Tuesday, March 28, 2017 from 4pm to 8pm at the Michael Torsone Memorial Funeral Home, Inc., 218 Mill Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601. Street level and wheel chair accessible entrance located off Vassar Street.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Wednesday, March 29, 2017 10am at Our Lady of Mt Carmel Church, Poughkeepsie, NY with burial to follow in St. Peter’s Cemetery in Poughkeepsie.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations to the following or to a charity of one’s choice:St. Francis Breadline,144W.32nd Street, New York, New York 10001-3202, Dominican Sisters of Hope, 299 North Highland Avenue Building 5, Ossining, NY 10562. For online condolences, directions or to send the family a sympathy card, please visit our web site at www.torsonememorial.com