Obituary of Monica Coscarelli

COSCARELLI
MONICA ANNE McMAHON

Monica Anne McMahon Coscarelli was born in Turtle Creek, PA, to Dorothy Conlon and Paul McMahon on July 25, 1924. She was the oldest of six children: Paul, Bernard James, John Regis, Ruth, and Dorothy. During the Depression, her father found work in a machine shop and was a foreman at the Haller Ford Company. As the oldest, Monica took on much of the burden of helping the family during that difficult time. Monica graduated from Oakmont High School in 1942 and graduated as a registered nurse from Allegheny General Hospital. In a choice surprising to her family, she asserted her independence and left Pittsburgh to work at the University of Chicago Hospital. When she returned to Pittsburgh in 1947, she began to date and often recounted the travails of dating engineering students at Carnegie Tech. "They would figure a tip using their slide rule" she quipped. "I just wanted to hide under the table." As irony would have it, she ended up marrying an engineer from Carnegie Tech, Cyril Coscarelli, Jr. Merging a first generation Irish family with a first generation Italian family led to a number of fissionable moments. When they had their children, each family wished to have each child named in honor of their own nationality. Seeking to simmer the fire, they calmly chose: William, Thomas, and Mary as the middle path. Monica and Cyril loved their children and valued education almost above all else for them. Each of the children first attended Sacred Heart Grade School and the boys later went to Central Catholic while Mary attended Sacred Heart High School. They each earned multiple academic degrees and those values transferred to the grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Kate and Cyra, Laura and David, and Sean were the next generation. Maybelline and Talulah are the great- grandchildren. Monica never lost her love of learning and enjoyed taking French class at Sacred Heart High School in her 50s. While Cyril planned everything, Monica took a more laissez faire view of any given travail "We'll cross that bridge when we get to it" was her motto. Monica crossed that final bridge on January 31, 2018, and that bridge was built by the BRIDGES Hospice at UPMC. Their kindness and love supported her as much as her family. A Chapel Service will be held in Calvary Cemetery on Saturday at 1 p.m. Arrangements by McCABE BROS., INC.
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