Mary Elizabeth Santostefano

Mary Elizabeth Santostefano, 81, of Alpharetta, GA, died at 2:37am, Wednesday, January 8, 2020, at Emory Johns Creek Hospital. She was born September 3, 1938 in the City of Verdun, Province of Quebec, Canada to Samuel and Mary Leckey. She was the youngest of 2 children. She is preceded in death by her sister, Mary Annetta Murphy. She married Guy Santostefano on July 21, 1962 and he precedes her in death.

Surviving are her son and daughter Mark (Lynn) Santostefano of Phoenix and Jennifer (widowed) Smith of Canton; 3 grandchildren K.C., Sean and Emily; and several nieces and nephews.

She was a long-time resident of Southern California (Pasadena and Huntington Beach) where she lived and raised her family after leaving her childhood home in Canada. She studied nursing at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Montreal and was a member of the 1959 graduating class. After graduation, she and her sister moved to Southern California. They drove from Canada, traveling much of the famous Route 66 on their way to Southern California, settling in Pasadena. On July 26, 1968 she became a citizen of the United States. She worked as a registered nurse for Hoag Memorial Hospital in Newport Beach. In their retirement, she and her husband, Guy, moved to Alpharetta, GA.

She loved to watch golf and horse racing, gardening, and to do needlepoint. She also loved her pets (numerous dogs and cats) and spending time with her grandchildren. Being an avid animal lover, she took to feeding stray cats at various locations in Alpharetta and volunteered for Cats in the Cradle Rescue. We would always look forward to her spaghetti and meatballs or lasagna that she would make for Sunday dinner. Those meals were always delicious!

The memorial service will be scheduled at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to one of the cat rescues below as this was very important to her.

Feral Cat Program of Georgia

https://www.feralcatprogramofgeorgia.com/

Cats in the Cradle Rescue

https://www.catsinthecradlerescue.org/