SPRINGFIELD – Mary P. (Pereira) Casanova, 88, of the Sixteen Acres section of Springfield, was Called Safely Home on Saturday, May 17, 2014. She passed into Eternal Life at the East Longmeadow Skilled Nursing Home surrounded by the care and comfort of her loving family and her wonderful caregivers. She was born in Hudson, Massachusetts on October 16, 1925, a beloved daughter of the late Adelino Pereira and Valentina (George) Pereira. She had lived all over the world with her husband and children and moved to Springfield in 1965. She was a loving homemaker to her family and showered them with her love and affection. Mary was the longtime Treasurer of the Massachusetts Chapter of the American Ex-Prisoners of War and a communicant of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Church in Springfield. She was predeceased by her beloved husband and best friend, Antonio C. “Tony” Casanova who was Called Home on February 23, 2006. Antonio was a World War II, Korean War and Vietnam War Veteran of the United States Air Force. He was captured during World War II in the Battle of Bataan and was blessed to have survived the infamous Bataan Death March. Mary and Antonio were married on December 14, 1947 at Saint Anthony Church in Cambridge, Massachusetts and were blessed with over 58 years of happiness together. She leaves her five loving children, Alice M. Casanova and her husband, David P. Fraser, of Cataumet, MA, John K. Casanova and his wife, Cheryl K. Casanova, of Longmeadow, James Casanova and Anthony J. Casanova, both of Springfield, and Paul Casanova and his wife, Belinda M. Casanova, of Memphis, TN; her seven cherished grandchildren, Amanda Fraser, A. J. and Evan Casanova, Victoria and Alexander Casanova, and Burton and Rosalyn Casanova; her cherished great granddaughter, Raelynn Casanova; her dear brothers, Richard Pereira and his wife, Joanne, and Edward Pereira and his wife, Beverly; her dear sister, Evelyn Griffin; her dear sisters-in-law, Lillian Pereira and Aldina Costello; and her many dear nephews, nieces, cousins, and extended members of the Casanova and Pereira families. Besides her parents and her husband, she was also predeceased by her two cherished grandsons, Matthew and Philip Fraser; and her dear brothers, Manuel and Valentine Pereira. Her funeral will be held on Thursday morning, May 22, 2014 beginning at 8:30 a.m. at the St. Pierre – Phaneuf Springfield Chapels, (413-737-1177), 7 Chapin Terrace, Springfield, MA 01107, (funeral home will open at 8:30 a.m.), followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 10 a.m. in Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Church, 405 Boston Road, Springfield, MA 01109. Her burial will be private at a later date at the Massachusetts Veterans’ Memorial Cemetery, 1390 Main Street, Agawam, MA 01001. Her family will receive friends at the funeral home on Wednesday, May 21, 2014 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Her family has requested that memorial donations be made in her memory to the Alzheimer’s Association, 264 Cottage Street, Springfield, MA 01104. For more details, please visit: www.stpierrephaneuf.com