WILMINGTON — Maria Virginia Nolletti Ross, 57, passed away on Friday September 20th, 2024 at her home in Wilmington, North Carolina.
Maria was born in Westchester County, New York, on October 3, 1966. She is the daughter of Cheerie Nolletti and the late Albert Nolletti, and the granddaughter of her beloved grandmother, the late Antonietta (Nettie) Nolletti.
She grew up in Brewster, NY, and attended Pawling Junior/Senior High School before attending Berkeley Business School, Western Connecticut State University, and University of North Carolina Wilmington where she earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree in English: Creative Writing. Maria was a member of the Society of Children’s Books Writers and Illustrators for ten years before switching to spiritual writing. She volunteered many hours in the Wilmington schools and churches in many roles with her favorite being assisting in elementary school libraries. She was a member of St. James Parish in Wilmington, where she especially enjoyed the morning services at Mount Lebanon Chapel in Airlie Gardens.
After successfully navigating a bout of extreme mental illness, she dedicated herself to working as an NC Certified Peer Support Specialist at Monarch’s Wilmington Psychosocial Rehabilitation.
Maria is most proud of her life’s goal in her role as Stay-at-Home Mom (duties that, as a child, she practiced on her little brother, Tony Nolletti) to her son, Don Horton Ross, Ill, and daughter, Julia Elizabeth Ross whom she loves with all her heart from Infinity and Beyond.
Maria is also survived by her older brother Larry Nolletti, her nephews Andrew Ross and Domenic Nolletti, and her nieces Hannah Tobias, Victoria Nolletti, Sarah Tobias, and Ava Nolletti.
Maria walked every day, sometimes at the beach to collect coastal treasures but usually around the neighborhood with her friend and neighbor Beth Lennon. She most recently completed a solo road trip to Washington D.C. to celebrate the wedding of her daughter, Julia and son-in-law, Gustavo Lima. Maria will be missed by all that knew her.
A memorial funeral service will be held at St. James Parish at 10 a.m. on Saturday November 2nd where a reception will follow the service.
The family will also honor Maria by joining the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention’s “Out of the Darkness Community Walk” at 2 p.m. on Sunday, November 3 p.m. beginning at St. James Parish, 23 S 3rd Street, Wilmington, NC.
In lieu of flowers, please buy something nurturing for yourself, or as a gift to a special person, at The Shop at Thistle Farms which supports their outreach in caring for victims of abuse.
