Loretta Ann Bartolomeo

Loretta Ann Bartolomeo, beloved grandmother, former secretary, nurse, and artist died

unexpectedly Wednesday, December 30th, 2020. She was 79.

Born in the Forest Park neighborhood of Northwest Baltimore to parents Arthur Herbst and

Margaret Magill-Herbst, Loretta was the sixth of eight children. The family lived in numerous

locales in the mid-Atlantic as well as Florida before finally settling in Baltimore County.

After graduating from Parkville Senior High School, Loretta followed several of her siblings to

find work at the Bethlehem Steel, Sparrows Point plant in East Baltimore where she excelled as

a typist in the secretarial pool of the accounting department. It was there that she first met her

future husband and love of her life, John Patrick Bartolomeo, an accounting clerk, who also

departed this world unexpectedly just two and half months ago at their home in Timonium.

After marrying John in 1962 and becoming a mother a year later, Loretta embraced her new

role as homemaker with warmth and generosity. The proud and loving mother of Kimberly

Vantran, a nurse, and James Bartolomeo, a filmmaker, Loretta eventually welcomed six

grandsons into her life and was never happier than when she was able to spend time with them

baking, tending to her garden, or simply talking at the end of a long day.

Loretta resumed her secretarial career in 1982 upon accepting a position in the Writing/Media

Department of Loyola University where she worked until 2004. She enjoyed being part of that

team and cherished the lifelong friendships that developed.

Always deeply proud of her daughter’s career in nursing, Loretta felt inspired to work towards a

nursing degree of her own and graduated from The Union Memorial School of Nursing as an

LPN in 1995. Her nursing career centered around caring for the elderly and ultimately to Stella

Maris, where she enjoyed her passion until retiring.

Loretta embraced a lifelong love of the arts, and infused homelife with creative expression.

This culminated in recent years with her work as an accomplished water colorist, earning

numerous awards at the Maryland State Fair and various gallery shows over the years. She

often expressed how proud she was of her son, James, as he chose and navigated a career in

the film industry.

Active in the BYKOTA Senior Center of Towson, Loretta loved the art classes and special events

happening there. She was an avid cook and baker that never met a recipe she couldn’t tackle.

She enjoyed sharing the bounty with her neighbors, friends and family.

Known to her grandsons as ‘Nonna’, she and Pop-pop enjoyed attending years of soccer,

basketball, swimming, cross country races and Boy Scout events with her beloved

grandchildren. Nonna always offered the perfect words of encouragement and admiration,

along with a welcome plate of fresh baked cookies. Her grandsons will truly miss her

ubiquitous greeting, “Hi Baby Doll, how are you?”

Loretta maintained close relationships with her four brothers, Ralph, Arthur Jr, and Charles

Herbst of Parkville, and Richard Herbst of Bethlehem, PA, as well as three sisters, Mary and

Joan Herbst of Parkville, and Virginia Gosnell of Bel Air. Holiday celebrations were always

memorable with the Herbst kitchen crowded and brimming with delicious aromas leading up to

wondrous feasts. The grandchildren relished being spoiled by their aunts and uncles and grew

up learning the value of being a part of such an expansive and warm extended family.

Later in life, Loretta and John enjoyed trips throughout the United States and Europe, yet it was

Maryland’s Eastern Shore that they returned to again and again. She was a lifelong practicing

Catholic and in recent years attended mass almost daily at Mercy Ridge/Stella Maris.

Loretta Ann Bartolomeo is survived by her daughter Kimberly of Parkton, Maryland, son James

of Dunedin, Florida, and sister Mary of Cockeysville. She was an adoring grandmother to

Benjamin, Luke, Matthew, and Jack Vantran, and Oliver and Emil Bartolomeo.

In lieu of flowers, donations to Stella Maris – Nursing Home and Skilled Nursing Facility, 2300 Dulaney Valley Road, Timonium, MD 21093 would be genuinely appreciated.

A video of her funeral service may be viewed at the following link:

https://www.facebook.com/Lemmon-Funeral-Home-160118960675658/videos/1057194798094052