Maria ‘Re-Re’ Corsetti, former Inquirer advertising coordinator, dies at 47

Maria “Re-Re” Corsetti, 47, of National Park, a bubbly, compassionate, former advertising preprint coordinator at The Inquirer, died Sunday, Oct. 31, of acute respiratory distress syndrome at Cooper University Hospital in Camden.

Whimsical, outgoing, and dedicated to her family and friends, Ms. Corsetti worked at The Inquirer from 1997 to 2019. She started as a customer service representative in the circulation and advertising departments, and later served as coordinator of the many preprinted inserts that are delivered with the newspaper, especially in big holiday editions.

“Every successful Thanksgiving paper had her hard work behind it,” one former colleague wrote in an online tribute.

A storyteller at heart, Ms. Corsetti routinely sent funny and personal emails to friends and colleagues, and made herself available at all hours if they needed her. “I’d talk to her at 8 p.m. sometimes, and she wasn’t on the clock then,” said Carl Meline, an advertising account executive for The Inquirer. “She had a great work ethic and lit up a room.”

In 2008, Ms. Corsetti shared a rough start to the week with a colleague by writing in an email, “Today, Monday, April 21st, 2008, I, Maria Corsetti, did the impossible. In a matter of two hours I hurt my wrist, spilled a whole bowl of meatballs, sausage, and gravy all over the floor, and managed to get the toll guy to come out of the booth to ‘unhook’ my skirt that was so noticeably stuck below my door.”

She doted on her many nieces and nephews, and took several family members into her home. Her personal motto was “everyone is included,” and her family and friends created a memorial online video of her.

She loved animals, especially her dog, Piper Leigh, and always had treats to share when colleagues brought their dogs to the office for a visit. She sold jewelry on Facebook, liked to quote dialogue from her favorite movies, hosted Easter egg hunts, and played games with her family at holiday gatherings.

“She made you feel like you were family,” said Pam Jackson, office manager of the NewsGuild of Philadelphia and a former finance department staffer at The Inquirer. “You could not be sad around her.”

Born April 27, 1974, the youngest of four children, Ms. Corsetti grew up on Reedland Street in Southwest Philadelphia, and graduated from West Catholic High School. She was active at Our Lady of Loreto Parish, and became known in the neighborhood for handing out the largest ice cream scoops of anyone who ever worked at Dottie’s corner store at Reedland and 62nd Streets.

She spent a year at Community College of Philadelphia after high school, then found her niche in customer service at The Inquirer. It was a perfect fit, colleagues said, since she liked to talk and solve problems.

“She was always a happy person,” said her oldest brother, Perry. “She cared more about others than she did herself.”

In addition to her brother, Ms. Corsetti is survived by her mother Elizabeth, brothers Billy and JoJo, and other relatives.

Visitation with the family is scheduled for 9 to 11 a.m., Tuesday, Nov. 9, at the Danjolell-Stigale Memorial Home, 3260 Concord Rd., Aston, Pa. 19014. A funeral service is to be held at 11:30 a.m. in the main chapel. Interment is private.

Donations in her name may be made to the St. Anthony DiPadova Society, P.O. Box 617, Drexel Hill, Pa. 19026.