Adriana Maria (Mascherin) Lalor, age 87, passed peacefully at her home in Little Meadows, PA on Monday, February 19th.
We mourn our mother’s passing and we celebrate her life with great affection, admiration and love. We honor her for her wise, generous, sharp-witted, and devoted embrace of her family, friends and community in many successful roles. As a daughter, wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, entrepreneur, parishioner, community member, and friend, Adriana traced a distinctive path around the world and a remarkably enriching and beneficent arc through our lives.
She was born in Udine, Italy, on October 10, 1936 and moved with her parents to Ethiopia before World War II and then to Eritrea. In 1947, when she was just 11 years old, she and her parents relocated once again, immigrating to the United States, eventually setting roots in Maywood, New Jersey. Adriana proudly attended the University of Mount St. Vincent in Riverdale, New York and received her Bachelor of Arts in Chemistry. She met her future husband, Bob, by chance while chaperoning a college dance. She was recruited to work for Pfizer in cancer research and enjoyed her work – leaving only after she married. She and her husband moved to Crown Point, New Mexico where they lived on a Navajo Indian reservation where Bob worked as a dentist for the National Health Service Corps. She gave birth to the first of her five children while in New Mexico. At the completion of Bob’s service, the young family drove across the country determined to establish a dental practice in New England. They eventually settled in Apalachin, New York and fulfilled their shared dream of owning a practice and having a large family. They built a home on their beloved farm in Little Meadows, Pennsylvania where they happily raised their five children and lived out the remainder of their lives.
Adriana stood out as the definition of elegance. Her regal laugh, grace, poise, and natural beauty were things for which she was known and admired. She was intelligent, quick-witted, loved to read, enjoyed puzzles, and was a lifelong learner. She was loyal, always adhered to her values, and stood for what was right. She dearly loved those close to her and always put others’ needs above her own. Together with Bob, she instilled in her children the importance of family, education, good character, kindness towards others, and religious faith. She befriended many people and greeted them in her home with warmth, care, and respect. When her family was young, she was very involved in her local Roman Catholic parish, St. Thomas the Apostle in Little Meadows, and was a strong and active advocate for the Right to Life. After raising her children, she ran a successful business,Cedar Hill Homes, for many years while simultaneously caring for her aging mother. She warmly welcomed each of her children’s spouses into her family and was a loving grandmother to their families.
Adriana was young at heart and it reflected on the outside. People often mistook her to be much younger than her actual age – few people would have guessed she was 87. In her recent years she took great pleasure being on the farm with her dog Nora, participating in her book club, and spending time with her dear friends and family.
Adriana was predeceased by her husband of 55 years, Dr. Robert T. (“Doc”) Lalor and her parents, Caesar and Anna Mascherin. She is survived by her five children Patricia (Michael) Corcoran, Marie-Thérèse (Jeffrey) Lotman, Daniela (Sven) Lohse, Robert A. (Mary John) Lalor, and Janelle (Adam) Kovacevich as well as 13 grandchildren and 5 great grandchildren.
Please join us in celebrating her life with a Funeral Mass at St. Francis Xavier Church, Friendsville, PA, Monday, February 26th at 11 am, followed by burial in the parish cemetery. The family will receive friends at the Allen Memorial Home, 511-513 East Main Street, Sunday, February 25th from 2-4 pm.
In Lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Mercy House of the Southern Tier, 212 North McKinley Avenue, Endicott, NY 13760.