Ann Ciaramitaro Ferrante

1933

BOOKKEEPER

WRITTEN BY ANN CIARAMITARO FERRANTE

Ann was born in 1933 to Sicilian Immigrants, Neno (a fisherman) and Antonia Ciaramitaro, in Pittsburg, California. She was the twelfth of thirteen children, four brothers and eight sisters.  They lived in a three-bedroom home, sleeping three to a bed, head to toe.  Ann always complained she was the one at the foot of the bed.

Her father Neno passed at an early age due to a stroke in 1942, when Ann was just eight years old, leaving her mother to raise the children.   Her mother, a devout Catholic, attended St. Peter Martyr Church.  The priest knew she needed help supporting her children and asked if she would like to work at the Church.  Ann helped her mother with cleaning, replacing candles, making flower arrangements and any other duties needed for the church.

While going to school, Ann worked at the Ferrante Market on weekends in Pittsburg, taking over her sister Eva’s job in the deli department.  Ann would sneak extra lunchmeat to her sisters when they would come in.

After graduating from Pittsburg High School in 1951, she worked at the Burgermeister Brewing Company as a bookkeeper, ordering, and accounts payable.

Ann was introduced to Neno Ferrante through his aunt and his sister in 1954.  They were engaged and married in 1955 and moved to Monterey where Neno and most of his family lived.  Neno and his brothers owned two purse seiners, the AA Ferrante and Sea Queen.  They fished in Monterey and later in Mexico for tuna.

They have two children, Anthony and Theresa.   When the children started school, Ann went to work for Bank of America (in 1962) at the Monterey Branch.  She started as a teller, then to a merchant teller.  Her favorite job was loan collections, calling on past due loans, and repossessing cars when needed.  Ann also worked at the Fort Ord and Seaside Branches and was then transferred to the Carmel Center Branch on Rio Road as an Operations Assistant.  Ann retired after working 25 years.

Jerry Lucido asked Ann to work for the Santa Rosalia Festival in the late 60s.  She was Secretary and later, Treasurer, volunteering for over 50 years.  Ann was Treasurer for the Italian Heritage Society and later became very involved in the Italian Catholic Federation as Membership Coordinator and Setup Committee for almost 40 years. 

In 2005, she and Neno celebrated their 50^th Wedding Anniversary.  A surprise party was given by their children at the Monterey Beach Hotel.  Over one hundred family and friends came and joined the celebration.

Before Neno’s passing in November 2006, one of many memorable moments for the family is when the AA Ferrante Fishing Boat was located in New Bedford, Massachusetts.  In September 2000, the family made the trip and was able to board the AA Ferrante for the last time.  This trip also included many site seeing excursions of Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard, Plimoth Plantation, Rhode Island….  This was a major accomplishment for Ann, since she has a great fear of flying.

Ann devotes her life to the Catholic Church.  She volunteers at San Carlos Cathedral to help count the weekly collections.  She is also a member of the Young Ladies Institute (YLI), Catholic Daughters, Monterey Civic Club, and Monterey Ladies Bocce Club which Ann started.

Ann also loves playing Bunco, getting together with her friends for lunch, and enjoying trips with her children to the Casinos.

ITALLIAN HERITAGE SOCIETY HONOREE 2025