Alberta L. "Abbie" Gwazda

Alberta Lepore Gwazda passed into God’s loving care to join her beloved husband Edward on January 3, 2018.  Abbie and Eddie were married on May 10, 1947, and she shared a deep love that outlived her husband and endured until her passing at age 93.

Family life was paramount for Abbie, and in addition to her devotion to Eddie, she cared very deeply for her two sons, Edward, Jr. and Wayne, and their families.  Celebrating traditional Italian holidays began at her parents’ home in Plainville and continued at Abbie and Eddie’s own home on Linden Street that they built together in 1955.  Meals were prepared by Abbie with loving care from recipes and traditions learned from her mother.  There was always more than enough food, as testified by the full stomachs of Abbie’s five beautiful grandchildren.

Abbie was a working mother and in her day, a pioneer among working women.  She was known as Alberta in the workplace, and the formality was not lost on her bosses and co-workers.  She was quick to learn new office skills and always was the earliest to arrive on the job. Abbie began her working life as a teenager at Trumbull Electric, later GE, and completed her career as a foreman’s clerk at United Aircraft’s Pratt & Whitney Aircraft Division.  Abbie planned her work there to enable her son, Edward Jr., to earn a full corporate scholarship, changing his life as a result.

Abbie is predeceased by her parents, Henry and Carlotta Lepore, her older brother, Anthony, her beloved twin brother, Rudy, and her husband, Edward, Sr.  She is survived by her sons, Edward, Jr. and his wife Debbie, and Wayne Anthony, and by her grandchildren Farley, Henry, Chester, Julia, and Dean, and her new great granddaughter, Penelope.  Surviving nieces and nephews include Karen Dowling, Robbie Lepore, Lisa Lepore, Stanley Wieczorek and his wife, Jean, and Michael Manka and his wife, Lucille.  Abbie also leaves behind a dear lifelong friend, Mary Vasile, and her husband, Frank.   Wayne held a special place in his mother’s life as a companion and caregiver as she aged.

Visiting hours will be held on Sunday afternoon, January 7, from 3PM to 5PM at Bailey Funeral Home, 48 Broad Street in Plainville.  Funeral services will begin on Monday, January 8, at 9 AM from Bailey Funeral Home for a Mass of Christian Burial at 10AM at Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church, 94 Broad Street in Plainville.  Interment in Saint Joseph Cemetery, Plainville, will be announced for a later date.

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