Catherine Elizabeth Mccann Altieri Obituary (1924 - 2020)

Catherine "Cathy" Elizabeth McCann Altieri, age 95, of Erie, passed away at her home on Friday, November 20, 2020. She was born in Brooklyn, NY on December 18, 1924, daughter of the late Charles J. and Katherine E. Krieger McCann. Cathy graduated from St. Augustine Parochial School and Girls Commercial High School both in Brooklyn, NY. After graduation, she worked as a secretary for City Bank Farmers Trust Company in the Manhattan Financial District. Cathy also worked for the South Hills Area YMCA of Pittsburgh for 23 years before retiring to Erie. She served as a WAVE in the United States Navy Hospital Corps during WWII and the Korean Conflict, where she met James Charles Altieri, a United States Navy Corpsman and Laboratory Technician from Schenectady, NY. They were married in 1953. Jim worked as a traveling insurance adjuster. They lived in Brooklyn, NY, Portland, ME, Enfield, CT, and McMurray, PA. Cathy was a devoted catholic and was a member of Our Lady of Mercy R.C. Church. She taught CCD classes while living in CT. Cathy loved being a mom most of all. She enjoyed cooking, baking breads and pies, and with her husband, Jim, planting and harvesting yearly vegetable gardens, and making tomato sauce and canning vegetables. She delighted in planting flower seeds and her abundance of perennials, especially forget-me-nots. Cathy traveled the eastern states with her sisters annually, and relished their many walks through Brooklyn and NYC. She enjoyed word find puzzles and the company of her cat, Leo. She very much loved her children and grandchildren and was known for her patriotic love of her country. In addition to her parents, Cathy was preceded in death by her loving husband of 48 years, James C. Altieri; a daughter, Diane Louise Altieri Henry; a sister, Mary Elizabeth McCann Katan; and three brothers, Charles J. McCann, Francis McCann, and John McCann. Cathy is survived by one daughter, Ellen Therese Altieri Cleary (Michael) of Loveland, OH; one son, James Timothy Altieri of York, PA; a son-in-law, Donald N. Henry of Harborcreek; two sisters, Josephine C. McCann and Helen A. McCann, both of Brooklyn, NY; four grandchildren, Edward James, Caitlin Michaela and Megan Ellen Cleary and Maya Louise Altieri; and nieces and nephews, Robert Katan, Mary Jo Katan, Charles Katan, and Debra McCann Nasr. No calling hours will be observed. A private interment will be held at St. Gregory Catholic Cemetery at a later date. Arrangements are being handled by the Dusckas Funeral Home, Inc., 2607 Buffalo Rd. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Diane L. Henry, RN, "My Angel" Memorial Endowed "Power" Scholarship Fund, c/o Gannon University / University Advancement, 109 University Square, Erie, PA 16541.