Community remembers ‘Mrs. Trav,’ GCHS secretary

By ROKSANA AMID ramid@liherald.com

Glen Cove is mourning the loss of Marcia Travatello who died peacefully after a brief illness on April 16. If you live in the city or attended the city’s school district, there’s a good chance that you’ve heard of or met “Mrs. Trav.” Many remember her as the secretary who greeted them when they were sent to the principal's office in high school. Others recall her warm and whimsical spirit.

Travatello was born in Astoria, Queens on Nov. 9, 1938. Her parents, John and Estelle Smith, instilled in her a sense of goodness, a high work ethic, and kindness.

“My mom was always known for her bright smile, her warm and welcoming disposition, and a willingness to help her family, colleagues, and friends whenever needed,” Lisa Travatello said. “She was also always curious and wanted to learn new and different things too.”

Travatello’s sharp mind led her to graduate from William Cullen Bryant High School at 16. She worked for the Stuart Smith Insurance Company, and later, New York Telephone.

Travatello met her husband Sal when they were both at Bob and Ann’s Candy store. While they both lived in Astoria and attended the same high school, they didn’t meet until May of 1955. Their first date was for hot chocolate at an ice cream parlor called Jacobi’s. Two years later, they married.

After student teaching in the Glen Cove City School District, the athletic director asked Sal to stay on as a high school physical education teacher in 1960. The couple moved to Glen Cove in 1963 when Sal got his tenure, where they would raise their two children: Lisa and Bobby.

Travatello worked at Little Folks Nursery on Sea Cliff

Avenue where she also enrolled Bobby. As soon as he went to kindergarten, she got a job in the attendance office at Glen Cove High School.

“When both your parents work in the school district, you're very active in school activities,” Lisa joked. “But she was a mom-extraordinaire, who supported her children 1,000 percent in all our different activities.”

Travatello’s warm and nurturing spirit wasn’t just reserved for her children. While working in the attendance office, she helped ease the anxieties of tardy students.

“Even people who were late for school, they knew they did wrong, but my mother took care of them however she could,” Bobby said. “I never had one student come up to me and say one bad thing about my mother.”

Travatello forged strong friendships, in the school’s main office. Rosella Gallo, a secretary, worked closely with Travatello. Gallo always felt as though Travatello was like a sister to her, and they shared many laughs.

After Travatello’s 10-day trip to Europe, Gallo and other secretaries seized an opportunity for a practical joke. They hid their suitcases in a safe, and when Travatello returned, they silently left the office.

“We walked out with our suitcases and got to the parking lot and in our cars,” Gallo laughed. “She stood there, looking out the window. Security was in on it, everybody was in on it, and she was like, ‘What are you guys doing’ and we said, ‘It's time for on vacation.'”

After she retired in 2002, Travatello was frequently asked to substitute for teachers. She was asked to help plan the city’s multi-day celebration for its 350th anniversary. City councilwoman and a GC350 advisory board member Barbara Peebles said Travatello was a strong creative force in planning the celebration.

“She was just so full of energy and fun,” Peebles said. “Marcia came in a poodle skirt, with her hair in a ponytail. She was just so into the spirit of the whole thing. So just knowing Marcia and having her involved in anything just brought so much like joy to everybody around her. I think she must have stayed a teenager her whole life because she really had that kind of spirit."