Josephine M. Caruso

Josephine M. (Gambino) Caruso, 89, a lifetime resident of Stamford, passed away peacefully on August 1, 2026. While she is no longer with us in person, her family is certain she is looking down from heaven, deeply concerned that we aren’t wearing a jacket, eating enough, or staying safely off the roads. She was, without question, our family’s professional worrier.

Josie was born on May 31, 1937, to the late Vincent P. and Rose V. (Loglisci) Gambino. She graduated from J.M. Wright Technical School in 1955, where she studied “beauty culture,” and immediately launched her lifelong career as a hairdresser. Josephine was married briefly to Nicholas T. Romaniello, welcoming her beloved daughter, Debra, in 1958. In December 1967, she married Daniel L. Caruso. Together in the 1970s, they owned “La Boutique – Salon of Beauty” on Shippan Avenue. Josie later brought her talents to DeVille Coiffures, Salon Louie, and other shops along the Post Road in Darien, ensuring her dedicated, lifelong clients were never inconvenienced. Only the COVID-19 pandemic could force her retirement at age 82; otherwise, she surely would have kept styling hair until her very last booking.

When she wasn’t critiquing hair, watching General Hospital, singing or dancing to music, you could find her taking her daily walks at Cove Island—a decades-long ritual. Josie’s core mission was to love her family beyond all measurable human standards. She expressed this through world-class culinary care, Olympic-level worrying, and her status as the undisputed Queen of the Guilt Trip. Though she mastered the non-so-subtle art of making you feel terrible for missing Church or a holiday, no one made you feel more cherished the moment you arrived. Visitors never left empty-handed; family routinely returned home armed with industrial-strength Ziploc bags overflowing with her legendary meatballs or perfectly fried chicken cutlets. To Josie, a full stomach was the ultimate defense against a dangerous world.

Her big Italian family, including countless aunts and cousins, was her greatest treasure and the key to her lifelong happiness. While she loved her daughter, Debi, and son-in-law, Taylor Bova, beyond obsession, her grandchildren were the true, undisputed rulers of her universe. Josie happily dropped everything to be their ultimate cheerleader.

Right up until the end, her eyes would light up and a brilliant smile would grace her face whenever loved ones entered the room. Though names grew difficult to recall, the faces of those she cherished remained unforgotten. Her family is eternally grateful to the incredible group of women whose dedicated care and friendship made Josie’s final years fulfilling and bright. She leaves behind a family wrapped in a lifetime of her hugs, a freezer that will never be quite as wonderfully stocked, and a legacy of fierce, unconditional devotion.

Josie was predeceased by her two husbands; her parents; her brother and best friend, Philip Joseph “Phillyboy” Gambino; and her dear cousin and best girlfriend, Marie (Denicola) Parente.

She is survived by her daughter Debra Bova (Taylor); her three grandchildren: Philip Joseph “PJ” Bova; Samantha Rose (Bova) Guere, Esq. (Ryan); and William David Bova (Ashliann). She was blessed with four great-grandchildren: William David Bova, Jr., Austin Rose Guere, Josephine C. Bova (her namesake), and Devin Anne Guere. She also leaves behind three nieces whom she loved like daughters: Rose Gambino Colangelo (Lenny) of Stamford, Michele Gambino McEwen (Gary) of North Carolina, and Joey Gambino Smith (Chris) of Norwalk.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at St. Johns Church of Darien, 1986 Post Road, Darien on Tuesday, August 11th at 10:00 AM. Immediately following Josephine will be laid to rest beside her brother and parents at St. John’s Cemetery, 25 Camp Avenue in Darien. For online condolences, please visit www.Cognetta.com.