Homestead School Library Dedicated To Beloved Teacher

It was easy to catch Maria Locopo in this pose as part of Homestead School's "Guess who was caught reading?" program.

Enter Homestead School on any school day and there is likely to be at least one student sitting on a comfortable wooden bench in the lobby just outside the library.

On the back of the bench an engraving peeks out over the student's head: In Memory of Maria G. Locopo, Dearest Friend, Dedicated Teacher. The bench appeared in the lobby not long after the death of Mrs. Locopo, who taught at Homestead from 1984 until she succumbed to a brief illness in 2000.

This fall, current and retired staff gathered with Mrs. Locopo's family in the Homestead multipurpose room to reminisce about their much missed colleague and to dedicate the library to her. They remembered Mrs. Locopo's warmth, humor, generosity, grace, and, most of all, the love of art, literature, music, and culture that she imparted to a generation of students.

A plaque near the library door now reads: The Maria Grazia Locopo Library. We Dedicate the Homestead Library In Honor Of Maria, Our Dearest Friend and Dedicated Teacher. Her Love For Children And Passion For Teaching Continue To Inspire All Who Knew Her.

Maria Locopo's family, granddaughter Christina, grandson Anthony, son James, husband Antonio, and sister Cosima Lazzari, with Homestead Principal Suzanne Viscovich.