Obituary of Ida N. Fortuna

Ida N.(Marchio) Fortuna passed away peacefully on Saturday, October 6, 2012, with her loving family by her side in Zionsville, IN. She was born on December 21, 1929 in Bridgeport, CT. She graduated Harding High School in 1948, and was proud to be a Starlett, a high school group that Ida helped form and whose members kept in touch for fifty years. Ida met her husband, Anthony Patsy (Pat) Fortuna, while working together at her parents Newfield Avenue grocery store. This is where the high school sweethearts fell madly in love and then married on September 29, 1951. Soon they would purchase that very store and work side by side, making Pats Superette successful. The couple were entrepreneurs at heart. They moved to Trumbull in 1957. Shortly after the move, with her husband at her side, Ida opened The Kitchen Workshop and again became very successful, this time in the upholstery business. Ida and Pat remained in Trumbull for the next 50 years. In 1973 they together began Fortunas Deli and Catering, another successful business venture located in Fairfield. This was the start of the Fortunas Deli and Catering legacy. Adding nine more locations, Ida ran the kitchens of each restaurant, teaching the employees how to cook her special family recipes. She would work long hours every day. She truly loved it and all the time worked side by side with her husband and family. Most every employee was thought of as family and the sentiment and respect was mutual. Ida retired from Fortunas in 2004 at the age of 75, and would have recurring dreams of making meatballs and lasagna. She loved her family more than anything in life and did everything to make her childrens lives happy. She was the family confidant; you could ask her anything and she had the answer for you. Ida spent many years taking care of her adult son David who developed Multiple Sclerosis. Ida was a thoughtful, caring, generous and proud woman. Ida was a strong woman who went after what she wanted. She was an avid Yankees and UConn basketball fan, watching every mens and womens game, and even attending many of those games. She enjoyed going to the casinos to play the slot machines. It didnt matter whether she won or lost, she loved it either way. In 2007, Ida and Pat moved to Zionsville, IN to be near their two young grandchildren and other family members. While in Indiana, Ida became a great-grandmother to Alyssa, who also lived nearby. For over 80 years Evelyn (Rossi) McCormack was her best friend. She was also very close to her sister Mary and spoke to her every day. Ida and Pat celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary one year ago. Pat left this earth 10 months ago and she missed him terribly. Together again, they begin a new adventure holding hands with each other and God and those that passed before her. She was very much loved and will be missed by her family, former employees and customers and many friends over the years. She is predeceased by her beloved husband Pat, her son David, her parents Joseph and Filomena Marchio and her brother Joseph Marchio, Jr. She is survived by her daughters Rosemary DLuhy of Avon, IN and Patti Stannard of Sandgate, VT and her son Paul Fortuna of Carmel, IN, as well as their spouses, Les, Paul and Angela, who were truly thought of as her own. Ida is survived by 10 grandchildren, Jennifer and John Helton, Beth Fortuna, Karen and Mark Whiteman, Chris and Liza Stannard, Amy Stannard, Anthony Fortuna and Michael Fortuna and great granddaughter Alyssa Helton, her sister Mary Tarasuk and many nieces and nephews. Funeral Information Funeral services will take place on Friday, October 12, 2012 at 10:00 a.m. in the Abriola Parkview Funeral Home, 419 White Plains Road, Trumbull, and at 11:00 a.m. in St. Theresa Church, Trumbull for a Mass of Christian Burial. Interment will follow in Gate of Heaven Cemetery, Trumbull. Relatives and friends may call on Thursday from 4-8 p.m.