Fundraiser Looks To Create A Space For Reflection After A Tragic Loss

MAMARONECK, NY — Judy Musumeci lost her life in an overnight fire at her apartment in New Rochelle on March 31, 2022, but her friends are raising money to create a place that recalls, not her death, but the joyful moments that made up her life.

A GoFundMe campaign has been created to raise money to purchase and install a memorial bench dedicated in the memory of Musumeci. The memorial bench will be permanently placed on the church grounds at St. John's Lutheran Church located on Fenimore Road in Mamaroneck, where Musumeci was a parishioner.

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The plan is to put the bench in a scenic location on the east side of the church grounds overlooking Harbor Island Park and the West Basin of Mamaroneck Harbor. The organizers say this is where Musumeci enjoyed spending time with her friends.

"Judy was a beloved church parishioner and was actively involved in many church activities. This memorial bench will be a meaningful way to celebrate her life and legacy," organizer Dennis Pennino wrote. "It will provide a place where friends, family, and churchgoers can sit, reflect, and feel a connection to Judy in the serene surroundings of the church grounds."

The bench will display a heavyweight commemorative cast bronze plaque with Musumeci’s name on the backrest. Purple flowering evergreen azaleas will be planted on both the left and right sides of the bench.

Organizers said 100 percent of the funds raised above and beyond the cost of the memorial bench, plaque, and shrubs will be donated to St. John’s Lutheran Church in Musumeci’s name for the sole purpose of deferring some of the church’s general expenses.