Virginia “Ginny” Mark Pizzala died in hospice care in Wilmington, Delaware on April 26, 2023 at the age of 96.
Ginny was born in Washington Court House, Ohio on April 7, 1927, the youngest of four children born to Mary (Saxton) Mark and Fred Mark. Her sister, Mary Louise (Mark) Hyer and two brothers, Fred M. Mark and Tom Mark, all preceded her in death. After graduating from high school in Washington Court House, Ginny attended Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, graduating in 1949 with a Bachelor’s degree in Home Economics. A job offer from the Hotel DuPont as a new graduate brought her to Wilmington, Delaware, where she worked in a position she loved as a dietician until 1952.
In 1950, Ginny married Urban F. Pizzala, Jr. They were married for 47 years until Urban’s death in 1997. Ginny stayed home to raise the couple’s three children until 1961 and then began a new career as a home economics teacher. She taught at the former P.S. DuPont High School, the former Wilmington High School and at two middle schools in the Alexis I. DuPont School District before retiring in the late 1980s. In her teaching, she introduced many young people to not only the traditional Home Economics subjects of cooking and sewing, but added what she considered to be even more critical life skills like the basics of household budgeting, child care and family life. Ginny took her job as a teacher very seriously and understood the impact that a good teacher could have on her students. She made her lessons fun and figured out ways to connect with young people. She worked with the University of Delaware to help shape the Home Economics curriculum for public schools in the State of Delaware.
During her retirement, Ginny continued to learn and to expand her horizons by taking on part-time jobs at several local furniture consignment stores in the Wilmington area, and by becoming a world traveler. In her 70s and 80s she traveled with family members and good friends to places like Singapore, Italy, Mexico, London, Amsterdam, Hawaii, Montreal, and the American Southwest. One of her last trips was to Iceland in the winter to see the Northern Lights. Ginny was open to new experiences and had an inquisitive mind until the end of her life. She easily made friends wherever she went.
Ginny is survived by her daughter, Barbara M. Pizzala (married to Tom Hammer) of Kennett Square, PA and her son Robert U. Pizzala (married to Candyce) of Newark, DE. Another son, Tom M. Pizzala, died in 2010. She is also survived by six grandchildren: Michael Holloway (Katie), Lauren Psimaris (Dennis), Ann Marie Galasso (Brandon), Mary Pizzala, Andrew Pizzala (Addi) and Alex Pizzala. Being blessed with a long life meant that Ginny also experienced the joys of being a great-grandmother to Alexa and Maia Psimaris, Lucy Holloway and Christian and Ava Galasso. She was looking forward to the birth of another great-grandchild, to be born to Andrew and his wife Addi Pizzala later this year. Anyone who knew Ginny knew that she was immensely proud of her family and placed them at the center of her universe.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in Ginny’s name to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, www.nationalmssociety.org/Donate
For online Condolences, please visit Chandlerfuneralhome.com
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