Body of 70-year-old Italian woman found sitting in chair, two years after her death

[FM123]

(CNN) The body of a 70-year-old woman has been found in her house in northern Italy, two years after her death.

Marinella Beretta lived alone near Lake Como in Lombardy. Her decomposed body was discovered on Friday by the Como fire brigade following complaints that a tree had fallen in her gardenas a result of overgrown vegetation, Como City Hall press officer Francesca Manfredi confirmed to CNN on Wednesday. Beretta's body was found sitting in a chair in the living room, CNN affiliate SkyTg24 reported on Monday.

snip

Como mayor Mario Landriscina has invited the town's residents to attend Beretta's funeral. He told Italian press on Tuesday that the local government would take care of the funeral arrangements. "I will try to be there and I invite the city to be present," Landriscina said, adding: "This is the moment to be together, and even if this woman had no relatives, we could become her relatives."

snip

"What happened to Marinella Beretta in Como, the forgotten loneliness, hurts our consciences," she said. "Remembering her life is the duty of a community that wants to remain united." Bonetti added: "Taking care of each other is the experience of families, institutions, of our being citizens. No one should be alone."

Read More: https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/09/europe/italian-woman-two-years-dead-intl-scli/index.html

[pandr32]

1. It is so hard to imagine a life becoming so cut off from their community

[fwvinson]

4. Not hard to imagine.

As you get older your friends die off, your family goes their seperate ways, you become forgotten.

[pandr32]

11. So sad

One would have a lifetime of experiences and memories to share. I would give anything to have my grandparents back to talk to. I wish I had asked them more about their lives.

[StClone]

13. It happens

I worked as an insurance agent servicing policies to older folks in rural Minnesota in the early 90s. One old man, who was quite wealthy, would want me to stay and chat for hours. I stayed as long as I could and we got into talking about faith, family, and memories.

He became attached to me, not the usual insurance agent thing. He said his daughter and her family lived a little over an hour away and hadn't visited in years. I told him about my struggles to keep my family going as I was paid on commission, and my three kids missed me as I often worked long hours, shuttling around late at night, weekends, all over Central MN. On my last visit to his home, he offered to give me a lot of money to help my family. Months later I saw a claim on his insurance. He had died alone which went unnoticed for days. It hit me pretty hard as he was kindly and deserved so much better.

[pandr32]

30. You gave him something he needed

...to feel as though he mattered as a human being.
It tells me much about you--working long hours on commission with three kids, yet you didn't blow him off as many surely would have.
Thank you for sharing.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

14. Not hard to imagine in Covid lockdowns. . . . nt

[pandr32]

31. OMG how true

What a terrible reality.

[jcgoldie]

2. Sad certainly but...

Sometimes I would envy so little intrusion from neighbors that I could be dead in a chair in my living room for a couple years before anyone noticed!

[rainin]

12. I tend to agree n/t

[BeckyDem]

3. What a heartwrenching story. omg

I teared up reading how the mayor will have a funeral for her....that is a beautiful response.

[blugbox]

5. Being two years ago and in Italy...

I wonder if her death was Covid related?

Either way, this is sad that absolutely nobody knew she was gone for so long. If not for the tree, how much longer could it have gone?

[OneBro]

9. Ya beat me to it by a hair.

Well, actually ya beat me by a hair, a nose and a leg.

[Tetrachloride]

6. This funeral after the fact is not much

In my family and close friends, 2 would have died and 1 did die if nobody had checked on them.

One was my mother. The other was her oldest neighbor who would have died of exposure to cold having fallen in the snow.

Get out and check on your neighbors.

[OneBro]

7. Hmm. Covid?

Last edited Wed Feb 9, 2022, 01:14 PM - Edit history (1)

From the article: “[The] cause of Beretta's death is unknown, and the examiner has established that she died sometime toward the end of 2019, based on the level of decay to her body.”

Move the dial a notch or two and her death is in the Covid window. That she was in her car suggest she was getting out and about. She may have been a “happy loner,” an active elder who survived her friends, or a myriad of other scenarios. (Doh! She was found at home in her chair, not in her car, but I still hope she was listening to "Car Talk" when she passed.

I hope she died laughing while listening to the best of “Car Talk” or “Wait Wait, Don’t Tell Me.”

[PTWB]

10. Was she found in her car?

The article posted by OP said she was in the living room.

Beretta's body was found sitting in a chair in the living room

[OneBro]

16. You are correct.

You're totally correct. My "brian" turned "chair" into "car."

Sigh.

[PTWB]

22. Oh it's all good, I thought maybe there was conflicting info!

It’s sad that she was so alone at the end of her years that no one noticed she was gone.

[FM123]

8. What a world this would be if every town had such a kind-hearted mayor.....

"Remembering her life is the duty of a community that wants to remain united."

[Harker]

15. Sad to see it was as a result of complaints, rather than concern...

that her death was discovered.

[Good egg]

17. Yikes

Attaching this link to an e-mail to my friends telling them they should call more often.

[KS Toronado]

19. Welcome to DU!

[secondwind]

29. Welcome to DU! Here's a heart for you!

[peggysue2]

18. What a sad story!

My aunt who also lived by herself in Florida was found dead in her bed after several weeks. Her daughter had tried calling her several times, and then the odor of decomposition led the manager of the complex to investigate.

Thought that was incredibly sad. But this is worse. Two years! No one missed her?

So much loneliness in the world.

[James48]

20. I am pretty certain

That all across America now we have people who die quietly at home, and have not yet been noticed. Their mortgages, utilities, etc all paid by automated bank transactions and auto bill pay. The ONLY connection left may be the Postal Delivery person who delivers the daily mail. And if somehow that isn’t noticed, it may be years and years before they are discovered.

Our society has made it to the point where automation means someone could go years and their death not be discovered.

[Hestia]

24. I was just thinking the same thing, especially in more rural areas

Doesn't help that their children may be the one's in prison for meth or OD's or what have you. Been happening here more and more.

Sometimes the elder is so ornery that they refuse to move or sell (happened to a neighbor of mom's pre-covid - 99 and wanted to remain in her house. Her daughter has had to go behind her back and told her that the daughter would be put in jail for elder abuse if she didn't move in with her. Even had to set up a faux court hearing over the whole situation. Daughter lives in Fla., neighbor here. Told mom I would sell our house and buy her's in a heartbeat). Mom's across the street neighbor has been taking care of her yard. Always thought of him as a snoop but in hindsight maybe that is a good thing after all.

Other elders, as stated, are the last one's standing of family and friends, becoming their memories. Of her sisters and cousins, aunts, uncles, etc., she is the last one. Her memory is stating to fade so I do wonder how much longer we'll allow her to stay in her house. By bro lives with her but he is faux-mask-vaxhole that he refuses to do yardwork or home maintenance.

I think there needs to be a large, huge push for all assisted living to become Greenhouse Cottages. Back in the 1990s it is quite possible that GH Cottages would have been the norm rather than outlier. Keeps elders active and engaged, living in small, communal cottages, get to pick who to live with and have absolute freedom to do what the elder wants rather than be dictated to. I honestly think there would have not been the death rate in NH's if this model had been used post-covid.

https://poplargrove.care/ - click on "How We Are Different" dialog box.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/22/health/green-houses-nursing-homes.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/01/opinion/aging-nursing-homes.html

https://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/12/15/moving-away-from-nursing-homes/

[KS Toronado]

21. Did this woman live so far off the beaten path

that nobody noticed her lawn needed mowed? Time to call or visit elderly folks who are overdue for one.

[Marthe48]

23. Two years is a long time. I know of 4 lonely deaths

A year after we moved to this house, we learned that a neighbor down the street had been found deceased in her house. Had passed away about 6 weeks earlier. Her husband had passed away a couple or more years. We hadn't met that family, just heard the sad news.

My Mom's cousin passed away and was not found for almost a week. And unfortunately, my Mom's brother passed away on his own and it was several days before his daughter found him. And my sister's best friend's Mom passed away in her house, and it was a few days before someone discovered her. All of them died doing work. My uncle had come home from work, sat down and didn't get up. Both ladies were doing laundry and died doing their housework.

Since Covid started, I do a morning circle with my friends who are on their own. We just text hi and do a check if we don't hear right away. It is pretty casual, but hope none of us are overlooked the way S. Beretta was.

[LittleGirl]

25. This really hit me hard

We were in Como in October 2019. What a sad world we live in.

[Emile]

26. I remember a story from Corydon, Indiana where

a guy had his dead mother in her bed for many years and living off her Social Security.

[appleannie1]

27. I am so grateful that my family and circle of friends are not like that.

My one step-daughter pays for my "I've fallen and I can't get up". I get phone calls all the time. I just got a call from my daughter that is a travel nurse since COVID, this morning. It is her day off so she called. Three days ago my one grand-daughter called and we talked for hours. The next night a cousin called. Last night a grandson called. I have neighbors that have my key since they take care of my cats when I go somewhere. They call 3 or 4 times a week. At least once a week one of them pops in. An ex daughter in law checks on me too. She is the only relative that is actually close and she was separated from my son when he died. We usually grocery shop together because she does all the heavy lifting for me. I know that is not the norm these days and that is why I am so grateful.
I can't even imagine being dead for years and no one thinking to check on me or wonder why I never got my mail etc.

[Klaralven]

28. Lots of people die alone

A guy at work put his head down on his arms on his desk.

The two guys meeting in the cubical across the aisle thought he was just resting.

By the time they investigated, he was dead.

He died alone within tens of feet of several people.

[lindysalsagal]

32. Where do I sign up?

I'd just like to delay it another 20 years, please.