Teresa Sansone

Born in New York, Teresa lived in Connecticut before settling in Roanoke, Virginia, where she started her career and family. She later moved to Texas to be close to her daughter.

She was a 1969 graduate of Immaculate High School and earned a Bachelor of Science from Western Connecticut State College in 1973. Teresa then graduated with a Master of Education from the University of Virginia in 1989.

Teresa was a teacher for over 20 years with Roanoke City Public Schools in Virginia, teaching at Fishburn Park Elementary School, Ruffner Middle School, Lucy Addison Middle School, and Woodrow Wilson Middle School, from which she retired. After her retirement, she volunteered with the American Cancer Society, with AARP assisting seniors with filing taxes, and was active in the St. Andrew’s Catholic Church community.

Throughout her life, Teresa was known for her feistiness, her fearlessness, her dependability, her drive, and her fierce protection of those she loved. She had an opinion on nearly everything and was never shy about sharing it. Those she was closest to depended on her sage advice and constant, unwavering support. Home improvement, crafts, cooking, financial advice, life advice: she had it all in spades. Always in motion, Teresa never shied away from hard work and reveled in a task well-done. She was meticulous and kept her personal spaces spotless. She was a quick wit who always had a clever retort ready to go. With a song for everything, she could (and did) sing along to every song she heard, because she somehow knew the words to all of them. She excelled at crossword puzzles and even solved Wordle in one try not just once, but twice. She spoke French and Italian, and practiced Spanish with vendors at the local markets.

In her free time, Teresa enjoyed baking, cooking, gardening, reading, knitting, crocheting, sewing, and walking in parks and trails nearby. She was a purist about preparing Italian cuisine, and particularly enjoyed cooking cacio e pepe and lasagna from scratch, inspired by trips to Sicily and Rome. She became a deft hand at lockpicking after being loaned a set of beginner’s tools (she ended up keeping them and adding to her collection). Most of all, though, she enjoyed time spent with family, when even doing nothing together was a great day. To be loved by her was truly an honor.

Teresa is survived by her daughter Leigh Catlin and husband Jeremy; sister Joan Kelly; brothers John (Katie) Sansone and Thomas (Ruth Beardsley) Sansone; nephew Thomas Kelly; cousins Anthony Patti and Jennifer Patti; and many beloved friends including Kay and Danny McGrath and Teddy and Sandy Wierzbic.

A memorial mass will be held at St. Andrew’s Catholic Church, 631 N. Jefferson St. in Roanoke, VA at noon on February 6, 2024. Inurnment will follow in St. Andrew’s Mausoleum.

In lieu of flowers, please donate to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.