Hastings-on-Hudson Resident to Celebrate 104th Birthday

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October 29, 2024

By Rick Pezzullo—

Angelina “Angie” Torrisi of Hastings-on-Hudson was born in 1920—the same year the 19^th Amendment was ratified, giving women the right to vote.

Just a few days before the next presidential election, Torrisi will be celebrating her 104^th birthday on Oct. 30.

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According to her daughter, Joanne Ricciardi, strong relationships have been the key to her long life.

“Things were not important, but rather the love of family and friends,” Ricciardi said. “The intangibles mean the most in life. The longevity was her family, and always doing something without expecting anything in return.”

Torrisi’s parents emigrated from Naples, met in the Bronx and settled in Harlem. Eventually, they had six children. Three of Angie’s four brothers fought in World War II – and they all came back.

Voted the “Jolliest Girl” in school, Torrisi married in 1948 and raised three children. Her husband, who worked as a butcher, died from a heart attack in 1982 shortly after they moved to Hastings-On-Hudson, sending Torrisi into the workforce, where she worked at New York Presbyterian’s Neurological Department.

Life was stressful, but Torrisi took everything in stride.

“She was just always emotionally even, and that’s what I believe got her to where she is,” Ricciardi said.

With the family living close by, Torrisi helped her brothers raise their children. Cooking was a mainstay, a skill that rubbed off on her nephew, Rich Torrisi, an acclaimed chef who co-founded Carbone, an Italian restaurant in Greenwich Village, and Torrisi Bar & Restaurant.

“I prefer my own,” Torrisi would joke when comparing their cooking, according to Ricciardi. “I like mine better than yours.”

Some of Torrisi’s staples were manicotti and salami pie.

As the years passed, Torrisi continued to make new friends easily, including neighbors decades younger than her, who continue to enjoy her homemade pies.

“It’s these friends who have kept her going,” Ricciardi said. “My mother is constantly moving. She never sat still. She’s the type of person who sits sideways in a chair, always ready to get up.”

Ricciardi also attributes her mother’s longevity to her religious faith and forgiving nature.

Some of her trademark expressions include: “Today may not be so good but tomorrow’s going to be a brighter day;” “You can’t change people. Just enjoy today;” “You can disagree but still love each other;” and “Leave it in God’s hands and have faith that you may not know why things are happening, but God knows.”

Torrisi lives independently at home with the assistance from a Managed Long-Term Care program of RiverSpring Health at Home.

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