A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated for Mary Immaculate Viviano Tower at 10:00 a.m. on Monday, July 3, 2023, at St. Francis Xavier Cathedral with Rev. James Ferguson officiating. Interment will follow in Pythian Cemetery, Bunkie, led by Rev. Scott Chemino and under the direction of John Kramer & Son Funeral Home.
Visitation will be held at the church on Monday from 9:00 a.m. until time of service.
Mary Immaculate Viviano Tower was born in Bunkie, LA, on December 8, 1920, the day celebrated as the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, to Louis and Pauline Candella Viviano immigrants from Salaparuta, Sicily, Province of Trapani. She passed away peacefully in her residence on Wednesday, June 28, 2023, at the age of 102.
She is preceded in death by her husband, Lt. Colonel William "Bud" Grant Tower; her parents; two sisters, Mathilde Viviano and Lula Bruno, and two brothers, Phillip A Viviano, and Joseph Louis Viviano, Sr.
Mrs. Tower, lovingly known as "Baby Mary" to her family graduated from Bolton High School, in 1936 as Valedictorian. There she received two scholarships upon graduation and was also a member of the National Honor Society. She was a United States Navy Veteran of World War II, and later an employee of the United States Federal Government.
During her tenure with the Federal Government, she served as Secretary to the Commanding General, Fort Polk; Administrative Assistant and Confidential Secretary to the Surgeon General of the United States Air Force, Washington D.C.; Administrative Assistant to the Deputy Commanding General, Sixth US Army, and Commanding General, IX US Army Reserve Region, Presidio of San Francisco. Upon retiring after 35 years of continuous service to her country, she received the Meritorious Civilian Service Medal, the highest award given to the US Army civilian employees by the Secretary of the Army. She later joined the civilian workforce in San Francisco as an Administrative Assistant in the Office of the President of Bechtel Power Corporation.
After President Ronald Reagan was elected Mary was asked by Bechtel to join the presidential transition team in Washington but she declined due to the illness of her husband. Bud passed away shortly after this and Mary moved back to Alexandria to help take care of her mother. She spent the later years of her life battling and recovering from cancer and taking care of her mother and her sister until their deaths. She and her very best friend and companion, Mimi (her late cat), spent the 2000's living a full life both socially and spiritually. Mary was a devout Catholic who faithfully attended Mass at St. Francis Xavier Cathedral. She led a full and adventurous life, creating a lifetime of memories that will live on in the hearts and minds of those who knew her.
She is survived by her nieces Norma Viviano Floyd (James), Earline Viviano Crochet (Don) and Charlotte Viviano Snodgrass; one nephew, Joseph Louis Viviano, Jr. (Judy); her first cousins, Frank Bruno, Jr. (Nancy) and Charles Phillip Candella (Louise) a host of extended nieces and nephews, and her beloved companion, Mae Mae the cat.
Visitation will be held at the church on Monday from 9:00 a.m. until time of service.
Mary Immaculate Viviano Tower was born in Bunkie, LA, on December 8, 1920, the day celebrated as the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, to Louis and Pauline Candella Viviano immigrants from Salaparuta, Sicily, Province of Trapani. She passed away peacefully in her residence on Wednesday, June 28, 2023, at the age of 102.
She is preceded in death by her husband, Lt. Colonel William "Bud" Grant Tower; her parents; two sisters, Mathilde Viviano and Lula Bruno, and two brothers, Phillip A Viviano, and Joseph Louis Viviano, Sr.
Mrs. Tower, lovingly known as "Baby Mary" to her family graduated from Bolton High School, in 1936 as Valedictorian. There she received two scholarships upon graduation and was also a member of the National Honor Society. She was a United States Navy Veteran of World War II, and later an employee of the United States Federal Government.
During her tenure with the Federal Government, she served as Secretary to the Commanding General, Fort Polk; Administrative Assistant and Confidential Secretary to the Surgeon General of the United States Air Force, Washington D.C.; Administrative Assistant to the Deputy Commanding General, Sixth US Army, and Commanding General, IX US Army Reserve Region, Presidio of San Francisco. Upon retiring after 35 years of continuous service to her country, she received the Meritorious Civilian Service Medal, the highest award given to the US Army civilian employees by the Secretary of the Army. She later joined the civilian workforce in San Francisco as an Administrative Assistant in the Office of the President of Bechtel Power Corporation.
After President Ronald Reagan was elected Mary was asked by Bechtel to join the presidential transition team in Washington but she declined due to the illness of her husband. Bud passed away shortly after this and Mary moved back to Alexandria to help take care of her mother. She spent the later years of her life battling and recovering from cancer and taking care of her mother and her sister until their deaths. She and her very best friend and companion, Mimi (her late cat), spent the 2000's living a full life both socially and spiritually. Mary was a devout Catholic who faithfully attended Mass at St. Francis Xavier Cathedral. She led a full and adventurous life, creating a lifetime of memories that will live on in the hearts and minds of those who knew her.
She is survived by her nieces Norma Viviano Floyd (James), Earline Viviano Crochet (Don) and Charlotte Viviano Snodgrass; one nephew, Joseph Louis Viviano, Jr. (Judy); her first cousins, Frank Bruno, Jr. (Nancy) and Charles Phillip Candella (Louise) a host of extended nieces and nephews, and her beloved companion, Mae Mae the cat.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated for Mary Immaculate Viviano Tower at 10:00 a.m. on Monday, July 3, 2023, at St. Francis Xavier Cathedral with Rev. James Ferguson officiating. Interment will follow in Pythian Cemetery, Bunkie, led by Rev. Scott Chemino and under the direction of John Kramer & Son Funeral Home.
Visitation will be held at the church on Monday from 9:00 a.m. until time of service.
Mary Immaculate Viviano Tower was born in Bunkie, LA, on December 8, 1920, the day celebrated as the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, to Louis and Pauline Candella Viviano immigrants from Salaparuta, Sicily, Province of Trapani. She passed away peacefully in her residence on Wednesday, June 28, 2023, at the age of 102.
She is preceded in death by her husband, Lt. Colonel William "Bud" Grant Tower; her parents; two sisters, Mathilde Viviano and Lula Bruno, and two brothers, Phillip A Viviano, and Joseph Louis Viviano, Sr.
Mrs. Tower, lovingly known as "Baby Mary" to her family graduated from Bolton High School, in 1936 as Valedictorian. There she received two scholarships upon graduation and was also a member of the National Honor Society. She was a United States Navy Veteran of World War II, and later an employee of the United States Federal Government.
During her tenure with the Federal Government, she served as Secretary to the Commanding General, Fort Polk; Administrative Assistant and Confidential Secretary to the Surgeon General of the United States Air Force, Washington D.C.; Administrative Assistant to the Deputy Commanding General, Sixth US Army, and Commanding General, IX US Army Reserve Region, Presidio of San Francisco. Upon retiring after 35 years of continuous service to her country, she received the Meritorious Civilian Service Medal, the highest award given to the US Army civilian employees by the Secretary of the Army. She later joined the civilian workforce in San Francisco as an Administrative Assistant in the Office of the President of Bechtel Power Corporation.
After President Ronald Reagan was elected Mary was asked by Bechtel to join the presidential transition team in Washington but she declined due to the illness of her husband. Bud passed away shortly after this and Mary moved back to Alexandria to help take care of her mother. She spent the later years of her life battling and recovering from cancer and taking care of her mother and her sister until their deaths. She and her very best friend and companion, Mimi (her late cat), spent the 2000's living a full life both socially and spiritually. Mary was a devout Catholic who faithfully attended Mass at St. Francis Xavier Cathedral. She led a full and adventurous life, creating a lifetime of memories that will live on in the hearts and minds of those who knew her.
She is survived by her nieces Norma Viviano Floyd (James), Earline Viviano Crochet (Don) and Charlotte Viviano Snodgrass; one nephew, Joseph Louis Viviano, Jr. (Judy); her first cousins, Frank Bruno, Jr. (Nancy) and Charles Phillip Candella (Louise) a host of extended nieces and nephews, and her beloved companion, Mae Mae the cat.
Visitation will be held at the church on Monday from 9:00 a.m. until time of service.
Mary Immaculate Viviano Tower was born in Bunkie, LA, on December 8, 1920, the day celebrated as the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, to Louis and Pauline Candella Viviano immigrants from Salaparuta, Sicily, Province of Trapani. She passed away peacefully in her residence on Wednesday, June 28, 2023, at the age of 102.
She is preceded in death by her husband, Lt. Colonel William "Bud" Grant Tower; her parents; two sisters, Mathilde Viviano and Lula Bruno, and two brothers, Phillip A Viviano, and Joseph Louis Viviano, Sr.
Mrs. Tower, lovingly known as "Baby Mary" to her family graduated from Bolton High School, in 1936 as Valedictorian. There she received two scholarships upon graduation and was also a member of the National Honor Society. She was a United States Navy Veteran of World War II, and later an employee of the United States Federal Government.
During her tenure with the Federal Government, she served as Secretary to the Commanding General, Fort Polk; Administrative Assistant and Confidential Secretary to the Surgeon General of the United States Air Force, Washington D.C.; Administrative Assistant to the Deputy Commanding General, Sixth US Army, and Commanding General, IX US Army Reserve Region, Presidio of San Francisco. Upon retiring after 35 years of continuous service to her country, she received the Meritorious Civilian Service Medal, the highest award given to the US Army civilian employees by the Secretary of the Army. She later joined the civilian workforce in San Francisco as an Administrative Assistant in the Office of the President of Bechtel Power Corporation.
After President Ronald Reagan was elected Mary was asked by Bechtel to join the presidential transition team in Washington but she declined due to the illness of her husband. Bud passed away shortly after this and Mary moved back to Alexandria to help take care of her mother. She spent the later years of her life battling and recovering from cancer and taking care of her mother and her sister until their deaths. She and her very best friend and companion, Mimi (her late cat), spent the 2000's living a full life both socially and spiritually. Mary was a devout Catholic who faithfully attended Mass at St. Francis Xavier Cathedral. She led a full and adventurous life, creating a lifetime of memories that will live on in the hearts and minds of those who knew her.
She is survived by her nieces Norma Viviano Floyd (James), Earline Viviano Crochet (Don) and Charlotte Viviano Snodgrass; one nephew, Joseph Louis Viviano, Jr. (Judy); her first cousins, Frank Bruno, Jr. (Nancy) and Charles Phillip Candella (Louise) a host of extended nieces and nephews, and her beloved companion, Mae Mae the cat.
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