Filomena Silvestri Filomena Silvestri , of Brockton and Introdacqua, Italy, died on Tuesday, November 15, 2011 in hospice care at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston from a long battle with mixed-connective tissue disease (MCTD) and pneumonia. She was 68 years young. Born in Introdacqua, (AQ) Italy, she never knew her father Mariano who was killed while guiding allied servicemen to their own lines. He was awarded a certificate "posthumously as a token of gratitude and appreciation of the help given to the POW's, which enabled them to escape from or evade capture by the enemy". Signed by Field Marshall, Supreme Allied Commander of the Mediterranean Theatre in World War II. She grew up among her fiercely protective extended family in a mountain village in the Abruzzi region. Schooled by the nuns and spending months recuperating from operations on her leg from osteomyelitis and cared for by her beloved uncle Antonio, a POW survivor of the African Campaign, she eventually immigrated to Venezuela in the 1950's with her mother. In her teens, Filomena came to the United States to study and learn English. Her intent was to return to Italy to become a language teacher. However, she married, and had three sons, to whom she was devoted. She delighted in cooking homemade pizza for her son's friends, loved the beach and was known for "counting heads" in the water according to her friend Tina, whom she lovingly cared for as the daughter she never had. During her married life, she was extraordinarily involved in all aspects of her son's lives and especially in their educational pursuits. Her relatives and friends marveled at her determination. She was known for delivering many home cooked meals while Robert and Richard were studying at Harvard and Brandeis respectively. While working to support "her boys" she earned her GED, but never lost a fierce desire to further her own formal education. She worked as a Teacher's Aide and Secretary in the Bilingual Department for the Brockton School Department. Later she helped setup an office for the Employee Assistance Program at Massachusetts General Hospital and did so with such efficiency according to its Director Andrea Stidsen who stated "she was so wonderful to our clients, always treating each one with tremendous respect. Whether their primary language was English, Italian, Spanish, French, Portuguese or any other language she was able to communicate with them and provide them with a gentle and earnest welcome." Eventually, the auto-immune disease she mysteriously contracted in the 1990's, severely limited her ability to work and function normally. Reluctantly she retired from the EAP. In retirement she was able to enjoy tending to her colorful garden, attending opera performances in Boston and the MET in New York City and especially travelling to Italy, sometimes twice a year to spend time with her large, warm and generous family and friends. Her companion Robert was embraced with open arms by them and often expressed his belief that their village was akin to paradise. She delighted in entertaining her cousins from Italy in her immaculate Brockton home and taking them sightseeing in the Boston area, New York and Washington. Filomena, although a very independent and private person, she impressed everyone she met and extended her generosity freely. She never passed a homeless person without donating something. She remembered everyone's birthday and especially loved looking for the right chocolate Easter eggs to send to her grandsons. Many hours were spent in Italy scouring shoe stores searching for the perfect Italian sandals and clothing for them. Her disease progressed rapidly during the past several months, but she was able to enjoy a brief visit to Cinque Terre in Northern Italy and a memorable dinner in Rocca Pia in a village high in the mountains near her birthplace. In the last days of her illness she was moved by her little cousin Matteo who when asked by the nuns in his school whom to pray for, he replied "My Zia Filomena!" She also was sustained by her intensely devoted cousin Rosa Maria and Aunt Giannina. Filomena left us much too soon. She is at peace and in God's hands now. She was predeceased by her parents, Mariano and Concetta (Bonaventura) Silvestri. She leaves her two brothers, Victor Rinaldi and his wife Maryellen of North Easton, Giancarlo Rinaldi and his wife Franca of Clifton, NJ; her sons, Robert Pirro and his wife Julia of Savannah, GA, Mark Pirro and his wife Virginia of Wrentham and Richard Pirro of CA; she is survived by her devoted partner and companion, Robert C. Jones of South Easton; she is also survived by her nephews, Matthew, Carlo and niece Cristina; grandsons, Konstantin and Anton Pirro. Funeral Information A private gathering of her immediate family and friends was held on Sunday, November 20, 2011 in the Russell Pica Funeral Home. According to her wishes, she will be returned to Introdacqua, Italy for internment.