Josephine Josie"" Marie (Russo) Bellardo

Josephine “Josie” Marie (Russo) Bellardo, 87, of West Hartford and formerly of East Hartford went home to be with the Lord to join her husband Salvatore Bellardo and her two daughters Cheryl and Doreen,(who she loved dearly) on Sunday, January 4, 2015 with her loving granddaughter, Ashley and her boyfriend Blake, by her side. Born in Middletown on October 10, 1927 to Salvatore and Angelina Russo she was the youngest living sibling of eight; Mamie Turro, Frank Russo, Tony Russo, James Russo, Joe Russo, Lillian Perille and Lucy Badrick. She lived in Middletown for 21 years until she moved to Hartford where she married Salvatore “Tootie” J. Bellardo in 1952 and raised her two beautiful daughters. She then lived in East Hartford for a long period of time before moving into Chatfield of West Hartford where she made many wonderful friends and seemed to find peace.

Josephine retired from Pratt and Whitney Aircraft, East Hartford at the age of 66 where she worked for 18 years as a packer. In Josephine’s spare time she loved gardening, shopping and to cook for her family and friends, especially on the holidays where the the kitchen was filled with many laughs and stories. Josephine is survived by her only granddaughter, Ashley Carucci and her boyfriend Blake Melling of Newington; her beloved brother-in-law, Paul Bellardo and her dear friend Thomas Parker both of New York and California; sister-in-law, Isabelle Russo of Middletown; a son-in-law, Richard Carucci of Wethersfield; several nieces, nephews, and dear friends. Josephine’s family would like to give a special thanks to Anita Rinaldi of West Hartford for all her assistance and help.

Funeral service will be Friday (January 9th) at 9:30 am from the D’Esopo-East Hartford Memorial Chapel, 30 Carter Street, East Hartford with a Mass of Christian Burial celebrated at 10:30 am at St. Patrick-St. Anthony Church, 285 Church Street, Hartford. Burial will follow at Cedar Hill Cemetery, (Section 11), Hartford. Relatives and friends may call at the funeral home chapel on Thursday afternoon (January 8th) from 4 – 6 pm. Memorial contributions in Josephine’s name may be made to the Helen & Harry Gray Cancer Center, 80 Seymour Street, P.O. Box 5037, Hartford, CT 06102. For on-line expressions of sympathy to the family please visit www.desopo.com.