Obituary

FILOMENA R. (LUISE) COLLAZZO - of Lexington, formerly of Woburn, July 25th. Beloved wife of the late Charles J. Collazzo, Jr. Devoted mother of Nancy Collazzo of Haverhill and Charles Collazzo III and his wife Jane of W. Palm Beach, FL. Loving grandmother of Allison Goodman of Haverhill. Also survived by a brother, Michael Luise. A funeral mass will be celebrated in St. Charles Church, 280 Main Street, Woburn, on Thursday, July 29th at 9 a.m. Interment will follow in Calvary Cemetery, Woburn. Relatives and friends are invited to call at the Lynch-Cantillon Funeral Home, 263 Main Street, Woburn, on Wednesday from 4 to 8 p.m. Donations may be made in Filomena's memory to the Woburn Public Library, 45 Pleasant Street, Woburn, MA 01801.

View Online Memorial

OBITUARY:

Filomena R. Collazzo, a longtime resident of Lexington, passed away on Sunday, July 25th, at Holy Family Hospital in Methuen. The wife of the late Charles J. Collazzo, Jr., who died in 1991, she was 87 years of age.

Born on the family farm at St. Angelo Alesca, Avellino Province, in Italy, she was the daughter of the late Joseph and Generosa (Carbone) Luise. She came to the US through Ellis Island at the age of nine, settled in Somerville for a few years, and then moved to Woburn, where her parents bought a store at 78 Winn Street. Filomena attended Woburn schools, graduating from Woburn High School, and continued her education at Burdett College, where she earned an Associates Degree. She went to work as a private secretary at the Electric Institute of Boston, a challenging job in which she ran trade and educational meetings, along with utilizing her typing, bookkeeping and shorthand skills. She organized campaigns for "all electric" homes, and to introduce TV and other electrical goods to Boston.

Filomena and her husband lived in Connecticut for a few years and, in 1950, they took up residence at a home they built in Lexington, where they remained for many years. Filomena loved to knit and crochet, and was recognized for her heirloom quality work. For many years she donated baby blankets to hospitals for needy families. She found time for such hobbies as tray painting, needlepoint, rug braiding, and gardening. She and her husband traveled twice to Europe, took many cruises, visited historic places, and attended academic and professional meetings. They were members of the Boston Art Museum, co-sponsored antique shows, and visited all the art museums in New England. Filomena helped her husband in his attempts to found a footwear research center, college, and museum in Lynn, an effort which ultimately resulted in the foundation of such a research center by the industry but in Philadelphia. According to her family, she "cooked like a gourmet chef, shopped like a professional, and gave a home to her family that was unsurpassed in efficiency."

She was the sister of the late Grace Luise, who died as an infant.

Surviving are a daughter, Nancy Collazzo of Haverhill, a son, Charles Collazzo III and his wife Jane of West Palm Beach, Florida, her beloved granddaughter, Allison Goodman of Haverhill, and a brother, Michael Luise.

A funeral mass will be celebrated in St. Charles Church, 280 Main Street, Woburn, on Thursday, July 29th at 9 a.m. Interment will follow in Calvary Cemetery, Woburn.

Relatives and friends are invited to call at the Lynch-Cantillon Funeral Home, 263 Main Street, Woburn, on Wednesday from 4 to 8 p.m.

Donations may be made in Filomena's memory to the Woburn Public Library, 45 Pleasant Street, Woburn, MA 01801.