Loretta T. Hope of East Moriches died on February 7, 2018. She was 64.
Born on October 5, 1953, in the Bronx, she graduated from Farmingdale High School, spending her junior year abroad in Sweden through an exchange program offered by the Rotary Club. She later earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in accounting from The College at Old Westbury.
Ms. Hope was responsible for the payroll at Jericho Schools for 29 years. Martin Billig, former assistant superintendent of Jericho Schools, wrote of Ms. Hope, “Loretta Hope will always remain in our hearts and minds forever. I can remember a bright-eyed young woman starting a new job with major responsibilities. She assumed the task ... flawlessly. She was extremely conscientious and hardworking. No task was too hard for her. Her feeling for others was shown when she helped all employees in the district. Her happy smile will surely be missed.”
She is survived by her mother and father, Jean and Thomas P. Hope of Sag Harbor; and a sister, Irene Gazza (Joseph); a brother, Thomas J. Hope (Diane); nieces and nephews, Zach Gazza (Catherine), Blair Gazza, Molly Manship (James), and Laura Ellen (Brian) and Brian Hope; and grandnephews Joey and Zach Gazza, and Mason and James Doyle. She also leaves behind her rescue pup, Riley.
A funeral Mass took place on February 16 at the Church of the Immaculate Conception on Quiogue. Interment followed at St. Charles R.C. Cemetery in Farmingdale. Funeral arrangements were under the direction of the Werner-Rothwell Funeral Home in Westhampton Beach.