Blanche V. Mastrovich

Whitehall-Blanche V. Mastrovich beloved wife of Steven J. ("Joe") Mastrovich passed away from natural causes on Oct 17, 2017 at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Hanover, NH after a short illness. Blanche was born in Whitehall, NY ‎on February 4, 1926 to James and Kathleen Morrow. Her father was a conductor on the Delaware and Hudson Railroad and her mother an employee of the Champlain Spinners silk mill and a stay at home mother. Her much admired big sister, Lorraine Morrow Gordon pre-deceased her.

Blanche lived her life with constant optimism, faith and love‎. She married the love of her life, Steven "Joe" Mastrovich in 1949 at Notre Dame des Victories Church (Now Our Lady of Hope) in Whitehall and was never apart from him for nearly 70 years. She graduated from Whitehall High School in 1944 and worked in the General Electric plant in Hudson Falls, NY on an assembly line making airplane engines for WW II bombers. She later attended Albany Comptometry School (graduating with an associates degree) where she learned to operate the first commercially successful key driven calculator (a predecessor to the modern computer) that had been patented in the United States by Dorr E. Felt in 1887 . She worked during her lifetime for the Whitehall Central School System and the Washington County Department of Social Services. She worked for a year in the mid 1970's for the Biological Labs of Harvard University in Cambridge Mass, while living in Belmont, Mass, working to secure grants and awards for Harvard's biological research.

Blanche ‎and her husband Joe retired in their 50's and enjoyed an almost 40 year retirement. In 1987 they moved to Boston to be near their son but during their retirement years traveled back to Whitehall monthly and lived there again part time in the 1990's on Pauline Street. For both Blanche and Joe, Whitehall was their beloved home where they built their lives and family surrounded by a loving and caring community of friends and family. Blanche and Joe had the chance to travel extensively to Europe and throughout the US and to partake in the cultural events of Boston but their most cherished moments were overwhelmingly spending time with family and friends and doing simple things, leaving behind a legacy of how to live a grateful and fulfilled life that is more dependent upon relationships than on material things. Blanche led a life of service to others - family, neighbors, students and faculty at WHS, the elderly, sick and lonely. She was anchored by an unshakeable faith which she handed down to her family.

She leaves behind a son Steven and beloved daughter in law, Jamie and granddaughter Maillane, (both of whom she loved very much) of Westwood, Mass and several nieces and nephews.

Family and Friends may call from 1-3 and 6-8 pm on Friday October 20, 2017 at the Jillson Funeral Home Inc. 46 Williams Street, Whitehall.  A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11:00AM on Saturday October 21, 2017 at the Our Lady of Hope Roman Catholic Church in Whitehall.  Burial to follow the Mass at the Our Lady of Angels Cemetery in Whitehall.

In lieu of flowers the family has suggested donations to the Whitehall Food Pantry.

 Service Information