Obituary of Mary Ann Carme Pradl

March 31, 2020

Mary Ann (Carme) Pradl, 75, of Brooklyn, N.Y. died on March 31, 2020 after a long illness. She was wife of Gordon M. Pradl who later passed away on April 17, 2020. Mary Ann was born in Greenfield, Mass. on May 10, 1944 and spent some of her early adult years in Colrain, Mass. The second of five children of Alexander and Adeline (Totaro) Carme, both deceased, she graduated with honors from Greenfield High School class of 1962 and the University of Massachusetts, Amherst in 1966 with a B.S. degree in fashion merchandising.



Mary Ann was beautiful, smart, and talented. She loved beauty, the arts, travel, nature, music, flowers, painting, and fashion. A talented seamstress with a keen eye and impeccable taste, she had a zest for learning and whenever she didn't know how to do something, she would either take classes or read a book to master the subject. Among her accomplishments were the award-winning restoration and decoration of her Brooklyn home, her exquisite watercolors, restoring antique furniture, tending to her beautiful garden and lovely flowers, cooking wonderful and new recipes, and always learning and pushing the envelope. It was in that same pursuit of knowledge and love of community that she started each day reading The New York Times from cover to cover, volunteered on a neighborhood watch group, and was on the board of a local nursery school for underprivileged children.



As a working professional, Mary Ann was a buyer at Signet Catalogue in Cambridge, Mass. and at A&S (Abraham and Straus) in Brooklyn, N.Y. Later, she was an assistant to fashion designer Ben DeLisi of London. But her most endearing legacy was her love of family and friends, especially her love for all her nieces and nephews. She was generous with her time, talent, and her thoughtful gifts, some of which were handmade. Always the perfect hostess, she enjoyed educating family and friends on her beloved city of New York, its richness of culture, as well as the classical music, plays, Broadway musicals, museums, and Brooklyn Botanical Garden that she and Gordon loved so much.



Sadly, she endured 15 years of a disease that slowly robbed her of her mental and physical powers. Her husband, Gordon, took meticulous care of her, always adapting to her needs and the illness with his signature ingenuity and resourcefulness. There were many challenging times, but he faced them with calm and patience, never complaining as if it were a labor of love—a true love story. Gordon tragically passed away from COVID-19 on April 17, 2020, two weeks after she passed.



Mary Ann lived a full life despite it being cut so short. A lesson in never giving up, she faced her illness with courage and hope in the tireless pursuit of remedies for herself and others facing the same.



Mary Ann is survived by her sister Sandra Santa Maria and her husband Tony of Port St. Lucie, Fla.; sister Rose Marie Siano and her husband Frank of Greenfield, Mass.; sister Josephine Erikson of Gilbert, Ariz.; brother Vincent Carme and his wife Marie of Sandy Springs, Ga.; and her aunt Palma (Totaro) Leveille and her husband Roland of Greenfield, Mass. She is also survived by her nieces and nephews, Alex Siano, Franca Conway, Nicholas Siano, Matthew Erikson, Beth Foley, Christopher Carme, Gianna Mann, Cara Fernandez, grand nephews and nieces Luca and Nico Siano, Alexis Conway, Amelia and Lila Foley, Dominic Siano, Sophie and Camille Carme, as well as many cousins.



Memorial services will be announced at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in her name to:

Brooklyn Botanical Gardens

1000 Washington Ave.

Brooklyn, NY 11225 or bbg.org/support/donate.

Or

Silberstein Alzheimer's Association

c/o NYU Langone Medical Center

550 First Ave.

New York, NY 10016