Mary C. Romano died unexpectedly on January 11, 2026, at her beloved home in Hampton, VA. Born in Lackawanna, NY, she was one of twelve children — a mesmerizing spirit who never knew a stranger for long. Mary was a gracious host with a unique gift for making everyone feel welcome and loved. If you knew her, you knew no one else like her.

After earning her GED, Mary honorably served in the U.S. Army and was stationed at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii, where she met and married William Romano, her husband of 44 years. Following Billy's stationing in Alabama, where their daughter Rosina was born, the family settled in Hampton, establishing a home where family and friends regularly gathered for parties, vacations, gossip, and respite from daily life.

A lifelong learner, Mary earned a master's degree in human resources. In addition to her time in the Army, Mary worked as a special education teacher before retiring to a life of leisure and travel.

She met the love of her life when her grandson Nicky was born. Endlessly amused by him, she was recently making plans to relocate to Florida to be closer to him so they could swim, race cars, and enjoy endless amounts of chocolate ice cream together.

Survivors include her daughter Rosina (Vijay), grandson Nicholas; her siblings Peggy (Santo), Marion, Patrick, Richard, George and Patricia; her brothers-in-law Michael (Edita) and Darren; her sisters-in-law Valerie and Jamie; her nephews James, Christopher (Kate), Christian (Andrea), Robert and Matthew; her nieces Melodie, Amy, Jenifer (Drew), Stephanie (John), Jilian (Tom), and Samantha; her great-nephews and nieces Kyle, Brenden, Chance, and Georgia. She was preceded in death by her parents and husband; her sisters Karen and Gail; and her brothers William, Andrew, Robert; and brother-in-law Darryl.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10:00 AM on Friday, February 27 at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Buckroe. The family will receive friends one hour prior to the service at the church. Mary will be interred at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, HI in July next to Billy.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to GoRedForWomen.org. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in women, and female-specific research is often underfunded.