Claudia DiBiase

Claudia DiBiase, 77, of Prince's Bay, a loving mother and doting grandmother, died Saturday in Carmel Richmond Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center, Dongan Hills.

Born Claudia Iuliano in Cervinara, Italy, she immigrated to the United States in 1955, moving to Brooklyn. She and Mario DiBiase were married in 1959 and started their family. In 1971, with three children in tow, they settled in Prince's Bay, where they welcomed two more children.

Along with being a homemaker, Mrs. DiBiase was a business partner in her husband's two construction businesses, Grandview Structural Steel and DiBiase Corp. She retired in 2008.
A skilled cook, she particularly enjoyed the annual summer ritual of jarring her homemade tomato sauce. She loved playing the card game Scopa. She treasured time spent with her grandchildren.

"She was a great mother, very caring and very protective of her children,' said her son, Mario DiBiase Jr. "She doted on her grandchildren. She just got a kick out of the crazy things kids do.' She also was very loving and protective of her daughters-in-law and son-in-law, family said.

Mrs. DiBiase enjoyed close relationships with her cousins, who also immigrated from Italy. Because of her own experience, she was always helpful and supportive of others who had made the same journey, family said.

Mario Sr., her husband of 47 years, died in 2007.

Surviving, in addition to her son, Mario Jr., are her son, Michael; her daughters, Gemma Picataggi, Angela Lampatelli and Claudia DiBiase; and six grandchildren.

The funeral will be Wednesday from the Bedell-Pizzo Funeral Home, Tottenville, with a mass at 10:30 a.m. in St. Thomas the Apostle R.C. Church, Pleasant Plains. Burial will follow in Ocean View Cemetery, Oakwood.

Services: St. Thomas the Apostle RC Church Wednesday, April 16, 2014 10:30AM

Visitation: Bedell-Pizzo Funeral Home Tuesday, April 15, 2014 2-4 & 7-9PM

Cemetery: Ocean View Cemetery

Location: Bedell-Pizzo Funeral Home

Church: St. Thomas The Apostle RC Church