ALBANY - Caterina (Catherine) Isgro ,age 90, passed away at the Teresian House Home for the Elderly due to the covid-19 virus on May 2, 2020.  Caterina was born during a 4th of July weekend in Bristol, Rhode Island on July 1, 1929 to Joseph Calabro and Marion Dubois Calabro.  She was raised by her father, a barber by trade and later an interpreter for the U. S. government during WWII.  At the age of five, she moved to Oliveri, Sicily with her father and learned firsthand of poverty, hunger, hard work, the bombs of war. She recalled the children in her town loved when the American soldiers landed as they were kind and gave the children Hershey's chocolate candy bars. At age 16 she was orphaned and became a real life Cinderella at the home of an uncle.   She married Santo Isgro, a barber in a neighboring town, in 1949. They came to America in 1950 on the ship Atlantic and never looked back.  With $2 in their pocket, they worked hard and built a wonderful life in Albany, NY.  In the early years they lived on lower Madison Avenue, then a "Little Italy" of strong bonds. Santo owned Madison Barber Shop and Caterina worked in grocery store delicatessens for many years.

Caterina had many close wonderful girlfriends over the years, though her best friend was her daughter. Her love of the ocean and seas never left her heart. She loved to cook big Sunday dinners for family, outings with her girlfriends, vacationing in Rhode Island with her daughter, eating out at restaurants, and mostly spending time with her family. She always said she "was meant to be a Mother".  Caterina has always been proud to be an American born citizen. She insisted on casting her vote for president even when she could hardly walk to the voting booths. She was a strong, stubborn, and spunky Italian woman with a huge heart. She was loved by many at Teresian House and retained her sense of humor and caring heart to the very end.

Caterina was predeceased by her husband of 59 years, Santo Isgro, in 2008. She is survived by daughter Ann Marie Isgro of Slingerlands, NY, son Anthony Isgro (Kim) of Albany NY; seven grandchildren, Dominic (Amanda) Isgro of Florida, Andrea Ritchey (Todd) of Delaware, Joseph (Yvonne) Isgro, Nicholas (Sarah) Isgro, and Anthony Isgro of Albany, New York, Michael (Hannah) Schewe of New Jersey, and Jonathan (Ciara) Schewe of Arizona; and great grandchildren Madysen, Silas, Jack, and Natalie.

Thank you to the wonderful caregivers at Teresian House, especially Caterina's favorite nurse Sandy who always made Mom laugh and was by her side during Mom's peaceful passing.  Private funeral services, due to covid-19 regulations, will be held at the Cannon Funeral Home. She will be interred beside her husband Santo at Our Lady of Angels Cemetery on Thursday at 12:30 pm and friends and family are welcome to attend with social distancing. Those wishing may send a contribution to her favorite organization St. Jude Children's Research Hospital online at www.stjude.org or to Memorial Gifts, PO Box 1000 Dept 142, Memphis, TN 38148-0142.  To leave a message of condolence for the family or to view Caterina’s tribute video, visit www.CannonFuneral.com