Marie Theresa Sardinha, 83, died peacefully at her apartment home in Sunnyside, Queens, New York, on Tuesday, January 28, 2020, surrounded by devoted hospice caregivers and loving and prayerful family and friends at her bedside.
Marie was born July 30, 1936 in Georgetown, British Guiana, South America, one of six children of John and Maria Vieira. Marie immigrated to Toronto, Canada in 1957, eventually reuniting there with her mother and all five siblings. Shortly after emigrating, she met Francis Sardinha, fell in love, and married Francis on July 30, 1960 at St. Jerome’s Catholic Church, in Brooklyn, N.Y., upon which she also became a naturalized citizen of the United States.
Marie was a full-time homemaker and stay-at-home mother until the late 1970s, when she began a career providing clerical and secretarial support for Queens Group, a lithographing company that served the recording industry. She also worked for 15 years in a clerical/secretarial role at St. Sebastian’s Roman Catholic Church in Woodside, Queens, N.Y., where she was also an active parishioner and deeply involved in the spiritual life of the Church and community. Marie’s involvement in the Church included membership in the Catholic Daughters of America, service as a Eucharistic Minister, and as a lead volunteer with the altar linens committee. Most importantly to her, Marie was also a devoted and prayerful lay member of the Carmelite Order Secular of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel.
Marie is remembered for her kind, sweet, compassionate, welcoming, and giving nature, her culinary skills, and for being an avid fan of Bugs Bunny and the New York Mets.
Marie is survived by her husband of 59 years, Francis Sardinha (90 years old), her daughter, Carol Sardinha (married to Justin Pickens), of Rockville, MD, and her son, Michael Sardinha (married to Christine Sardinha), of Woodside, N.Y. She is also survived by her five siblings: Desmond Vieira, Vicki Scallon, Monica Murray, Joan Dawson, and Martin Vieira, in addition to her niece, Donna Woodward, and three nephews – Derek Gaspar, Brian Murray, and Richard Vieira -- all of Ontario, Canada.
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