Ethel Mae Perazzoli

With great sadness, we announce the passing of Ethel Mae Perazzoli on June 17, 2025, at the age of 101. She is survived by her two children, Lou Perazzoli, (Cheryl) and Pamela Cassels (Daniel). Also surviving her are her grandchildren Kaitlyn Sullivan (Brian); Brian Cassels (Kaitlin), Lisa Perazzoli (Zachary) and Laura Perazzoli (William). She was blessed with six great-grandchildren.

Ethel was born in 1924, in a small coal mining town in Pennsylvania, the youngest of ten children. She graduated from California Teachers College in Pennsylvania in 1945 with a BS degree in Education. After her marriage she moved to Greenbelt, MD, where she taught English and PE at Greenbelt Junior High.

Taking some time off to raise her young children, Ethel returned to teaching in 1958 and obtained her Masters Degree in 1963. She later was able to secure a position as Guidance Counselor at Charles Carroll Junior High and later Parkdale High School in Riverdale, MD, where she finished her 35-year career in 1986.

In retirement, Ethel enjoyed her many friends that she made in the ladies’ golf league and her pinochle and bridge groups. In 1996 she moved to San Diego to be closer to her daughter. Having purchased a home on a golf course in Rancho Bernardo, she honed her golfing skills and continued to play bridge with new-found friends. Her other passion was shopping, which she enjoyed with her daughter and sister, Helen.

Ethel was a devoted mother who advocated for her children throughout their years in school and never gave them a choice as to whether or not to go to college. Extremely intelligent, it was difficult for her to give up her strong-willed independence even when she developed dementia in her later years. Ethel loved her family deeply and especially delighted in her great-grandchildren. She continued to express her appreciation for the attentive assistance that she received from her family, even as her health waned and her mental clarity diminished. She will be dearly missed.

Ethel’s legacy will live on in the life lessons she taught her children and the memories that she created for her family and friends to cherish. May she rest in peace.