Marianna Re

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Credit: Re family

Marianna ‘Mary’ Tesoriero’s story begins on Panarea, one of the smallest of the Aeolian Islands off Sicily’s north-east coast. This volcanic island, with its cliffs and clear waters, has been home to the Tesoriero family for centuries.

Life on the island was beautiful but demanding. In the late nineteenth century, disease wiped out the Malvasia grapevines that had supported the local economy for generations. By the early 1900s, the wine industry had collapsed, and many Aeolian families looked overseas – to America, Argentina and Australia – in search of work.

Mary’s father Pietro came of age in this environment. He knew both joy and sorrow. His first wife, also named Marianna, died of Spanish flu shortly after the birth of their daughter Francesca. Like many men of his generation, Pietro left Francesca in the care of her grandparents while he sought work in Sydney.

In February 1928, Pietro returned to Panarea. Soon after, in an arranged marriage, he wed Angela, the younger sister of his late wife. By August, he had sailed again for Australia, leaving  Angela pregnant and five-year-old Francesca behind. On 25 September 1929, Angela gave birth to Marianna, named for Pietro’s first wife. Just a few months later, she set out for Sydney with both girls. The voyage was difficult. Angela suffered badly from seasickness and feared for their safety on the long crossing. When they finally reached port, Pietro had confused the arrival time and was not there to meet them. For Angela and her daughters, it was a daunting start to life in a new country. 

Mary’s early years in Sydney were shaped by resilience and community. The family arrived as the Great Depression took hold, when money and food were scarce and families relied on kindness and barter to survive. Pietro’s fruit shop stayed afloat only because a generous landlord waived the rent. Angela had just two weeks to learn English before serving customers. Mary – known by her anglicised name all her life – grew up speaking English and helping in each family business – a pattern that would shape the strong work ethic and warm personality she became known for.

Mary and her sister Francesca (‘Nancy’) in early childhood, posed for a studio portrait. 
Credit: Re family

At 8 years old, Mary celebrated her First Holy Communion, a milestone for Italian families. 
Credit: Re family

Through the Depression and the years of the Second World War, the Tesoriere family adapted to changing times. Facing anti-Italian prejudice, Pietro and Angela stopped speaking Italian in the shop. Pietro’s 1931 naturalisation spared him from internment, although many of their friends were not so fortunate. Mary remembered the fear of explosions during the Japanese attack on Sydney Harbour, but she also recalled the small joys – Sunday outings to the movies no matter how hard life was, and the love of a close-knit family.

As the eldest daughter, Mary cared for her baby brother Tony, 13 years her junior. She taught him to spell and read, bought clothes two sizes too big ‘so you’ll grow into them’, and packed his school lunches – ham and cheese on good days, dreaded Peck’s fish paste on Fridays.

Mary’s faith anchored her. She walked miles to church in rain or shine, dragging a reluctant Tony with her and reassuring him: ‘Don’t worry, Our Lady will protect us.’ Those nightly walks through dark lane.ways showed the quiet courage that stayed with her throughout her life. 

Mary was industrious and sociable. Over the years, her family moved shops and homes across Sydney. She sold fruit and sandwiches, dipped ice creams in chocolate and made malted milkshakes so popular that children came from miles around.

Mary working alongside her parents in their shop, learning the values of hard work and family support. 
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The Aeolian community was small but close-knit, and it was through these family networks that Mary’s life eventually took a new direction westward. In her late teens and twenties, Mary often travelled to Perth for long visits, helping her sister Francesca (‘Nancy’) raise her young family. Nancy later joked that Mary was like a second mother to her children. Mary became godmother to her niece Maria and to many others, and she delighted in the role of nurturer.

Mary’s 21st birthday portrait shows her in a gown of her own design, lovingly made by her sister Nancy.
Credit: Re family

As she approached 30, family concern about her unmarried status reflected the expectations of the time. Mary, uninterested in Sydney suitors, agreed to a blind date arranged by Nancy at Perth’s Casa d’Italia – the social heart of the WA Italian community. Love blossomed at a dance in that hall where so many Aeolian romances began. Mary later joked she fell for Maurice Re because ‘he had a good government job – I thought I’d never have to work in a shop again!’ (The job didn’t last, but Mary’s sense of humour did.)

Mary and Maurice on their wedding day at St Patrick’s Basilica, Fremantle, 31 October 1960. When Maurice proposed to her through a letter while she was in the USA, she had a courtier design her dress and then brought it back with her upon her return home.
Credit: Re family

Mary and Maurice enjoying a dance at the WA Italian Club.
Credit: Marianna and Maurice Re and family

Marianna and Maurice accompanied by their cousin Felicia and a few friends during one of the lavish balls held at the WA Italian Club.
Credit: Marianna and Maurice Re and family

With requisite beer barrel in tow, Mary and Maurice joined cousin Felicia and her husband Umberto at a glamorous ball.
Credit: Re family

After a challenging start living with in-laws, Mary and her husband set up their own home, and she looked forward to summer holidays at Golden Bay. In 1964, the family had built a simple holiday shack near the beach, with no power and no running water, only sea breezes – and lots of noise. Easter egg hunts, briscola card games and lively New Year parties that spilled into the street became part of family tradition. Line dancing, led by the ‘two Aunt Marys’, added to the fun and remains fondly remembered. Mary’s three sons – Maurice, Gregory and Andrew – were brought up in the coastal suburb of Trigg, where the family settled in 1965.

At their Leederville home, Mary and Maurice celebrated the christening of their son Maurice.
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Marianna with her sons in the backyard of their family home. 
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Mary with husband Maurice and sons Maurice, Gregory and Andrew.
Credit: Re family

Credit: Re family

Mary with her sons Maurice, Gregory and Andrew at the Western Australian border, during a memorable family road trip. 
Credit: Re family

Mary swam daily, made friends easily, and fed local lizards with drops from her water bottle. Even as arthritis made climbing out of Mettam’s Pool difficult in later years, Mary would laugh and cheekily ask passing men for help: ‘No one’s interested in an old duck like me!’ Shark warnings never kept her away either – she joked she was ‘too skinny for a shark to bother with’.

Mary’s life had not been without sorrow. Her younger brother John died of leukaemia in 1970 and in 1976 her mother Angela passed away. Angela’s favourite song, ‘Que Sera Sera’, became Mary’s own anthem and she sang it to her children in hard times.

Mary inherited a share of the family’s ancestral house on Panarea, Casa Nonno Picuozzu, a modest two-bedroom home near St Peter’s Church, with a pergola overlooking the Mediterranean. It remains in family hands today, where descendants gather each summer to share meals under the vines with views to the island of Basiluzzo.

Mary and Maurice worked tirelessly in their shops, raised their sons with strong family values and travelled whenever they could – back to Italy, across Europe and to the US, Thailand and Singapore. Through her sons’ marriages, Mary finally had the daughters she wished for (Caren, Patricia and Casey) and delighted in her nine grandchildren. She laughed that ‘the girls finally outnumbered the boys’.

Mary was the social heart of every gathering. For more than 50 years, she bowled with the North Perth Ladies League at Rosemount Bowl – more for laughter than for strikes – collecting ‘most improved’ trophies and trading outrageous jokes with her Friday ‘ladies’ tea’ group. She carried on Golden Bay’s canasta tradition, loudly barracked for the Eagles and Swans, and was always the first to sing and dance.

Credit: Re family

For more than 50 years, Mary participated in 10-pin bowling at the Rosemount Bowl, enjoying the laughter and friendship as much as the game itself. 
Credit: Re family

In May 2023, Mary passed away in her beloved Trigg home, surrounded by the family she cherished. Her family continue to honour their Aeolian roots – some carrying names like Sophia Marianna and Salina – and return to Panarea to reconnect with that heritage. Mary’s life spanned oceans and eras, from a tiny volcanic island to Depression-era Sydney, from a Golden Bay shack to the beaches of Trigg. Through hardship and joy, she radiated warmth, resilience and fun. She was an adored wife, mother, nonna and friend whose story reflects migration, family and the enduring spirit of community.

Mary thrived on family and friendships, which gave energy and meaning to her daily life. 
Credit: Re family