Fontana passed away on Wednesday, August 11, surrounded by her loved ones.
Her funeral took place on Thursday, August 19, at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, in Mount Pritchard.
Due to the current COVID-19 restrictions in New South Wales, only 10 people could attend the service.
Many others would have liked to pay their respects to such a distinguished member of the community and to express their gratitude for her exemplary dedication to her family and to society.
Foremost among them are: the Club Marconi Ladies Auxiliary, of which Fontana was the president for many years; the Scalabrini Villages in Austral and Chipping Norton; the South West Italian Australian Association Village; the Mamma Lena Child Care Centre; the Fairfield Seniors Network; the Premier Bicentennial Senior Citizens Consultative Group; and the National Italian-Australian Women’s Association.
Fontana was born in Surry Hills, in Sydney, on June 10, 1927.
Her parents migrated from Trento to Sydney in 1925 and moved to a farm in Horsley Park in 1930.
Fontana attended school at Our Lady of the Rosary, in Fairfield.
When the war broke out in 1940, her father, Augusto Pretti, was transferred to South Australia for three years.
At the age of 13, Fontana began to help her mother, Lucia, with the housework and her brothers’ education.
This deluge of responsibility at such a young age prepared Fontana for the hardships of life and taught her the importance of helping those in need.
Fontana assisted migrants with translating letters and documents, essentially providing the services of modern-day social workers.
The harsh existence of farm life prompted her to attend a ball in Bossley Park, where she met a local gardener, Frank Fontana.
Frank, her husband and the father of her children, was her life companion; constantly encouraging and supporting her charitable initiatives.
Fontana and her husband opened a fruit and vegetable shop in Northbridge, then another in Wiley Park.
She returned to Fairfield every weekend to see family members and was actively involved with organising a range of events at Club Marconi, which opened in 1958.
These events included the debutante’s ball, the children’s disco, the annual Christmas carols, the children’s Christmas party, the chestnut festival and various evenings for the club’s senior citizens.
Fontana received several awards in recognition of her outstanding work in the community, including: the Premier’s Award in 1988; the Australia Day Community Citizen of the Year Award in 1989; the Medal of the Order of Australia in 1995; the Order to the Merit of the Italian Republic; Italian Woman of the Year; and an honorary life membership with Club Marconi.
Perhaps Fontana’s greatest honour took place on January 26, 2005, when she carried the baton in the Queen’s Baton Relay during Melbourne’s Commonwealth Games.
Fontana was a role model to all those around her; she enriched the lives of those in the Italian community and her memory will be treasured by many.
The management and staff of La Fiamma and Rete Italia would like to extend their warmest condolences to her children, Dennis and Lorraine, and their families.
