Stella Garamone, formerly of Southampton, died December 18, 2019, at the Marianna Health and Rehabilitation Center in Marianna, Florida. She was 90.
Ms. Garamone was born in Manhattan to James and Marion English Bozenos on May 31, 1929. When she was 2 years old, the family moved to Southampton, where the family eventually purchased and lived in the former home of Pyrrhus Concer at 51 Pond Lane. She cherished her memories of growing up in the house and told her children of its historical significance. During high school, she worked as a cashier at the Windmill Restaurant, located on the corner of Windmill and Jobs, where her father was the cook. Her fondest memory there was getting movie star Gary Cooper’s autograph.
She graduated as salutatorian of the Southampton High School Class of 1947, and, after completing secretarial school in New York City, she took a position there at the Cities Service Oil Company. She returned to Southampton when her father became too ill to run his restaurant on Hill Street, Jim’s Place. She eventually took a position with Southampton attorney Dave Gilmartin, and later worked for Rutyna Motors in Riverhead, Cameron Plumbing in Southampton and Gobel Aircraft in Montauk. In 1953, she met Joseph Garamone and they married in 1956. Together they ran the family businesses in Southampton Shores, which included a general store/gas station and the North Sea Fuel Company. She also volunteered her time as a member of the North Sea Fire Department Ladies Auxiliary.
The family relocated to Scottsdale, Arizona, in 1972, where, widowed in 1974, she went back into the work force as an executive secretary for the Armour Food Company. In 1984, she then moved to Arlington, Virginia, working as a legal secretary. She later moved to Pompano Beach, Florida, where she purchased a condo overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. While in Pompano Beach, she worked for the Pompano Beach Elks Club and the Fort Lauderdale Center for the Blind, retiring from the Broward County Attorney’s Office in 2003.
In her retirement, she enjoyed painting, watching the New York Yankees and volunteering at the Broward County Library. In her lifetime, she enjoyed traveling, and managed to visit 38 of the 50 states and several islands of the Caribbean. Most of all, she enjoyed her family, who remember her as always putting them ahead of herself and her own needs, a trait she exhibited every day of her life.
She was predeceased by her parents, husband and brother, James Bozenos Jr. of Southampton, who was killed in World War II during the Battle of the Bulge. She is survived by her sons, J. P. Garamone (fiancee Donna) of Southampton, and James Garamone (Beth) of Marianna; daughter Marian A. Barsumian (Craig) of Marianna; grandchildren, Matthew, Brandon and Carly Garamone of California, and Amanda and James Garamone of Marianna.
on Jan 13, 2020