Mario V Farina

Troy – Mario V. Farina, 98, passed away on Thursday, May 19th, 2022 at Samaritan Hospital after a brief illness. Born in Schenectady, Mario was the son of the late Michele and Louisa (Ferri) Farina. He was a graduate of Mont Pleasant High School and went on to earn his bachelors and master’s degrees in computer science. Mario honorably served in the US Army during World War II, serving in the China-Burma-India Theater. While in the Army, he studied Morse code and ran the Army radio station. Mario was a pioneer in computer programming. He spent 38 years at the General Electric Co., 15 years at the NYS Department of Labor (retiring at age 90!) and in between was an associate professor and IT Specialist at RPI. All the while, Mario was writing 23 books on computer programming and finance, with many of them being translated into multiple languages to be used throughout the world. He was a classic car enthusiast and even built his own roadster in his younger years. Mario had an amazing sense of humor and was a true pun-master. He was a kind, generous soul and loved to talk and make people laugh. Mario leaves behind his companion of 29 years, Ann Merante; his daughters, Kristine (John) Driessen, Kathy (Craig) Remaley, Kirsten (Thomas) Askew and Karen Capen; step-son, Peter (Robin) Merante as well as 10 grandchildren, 10 great grandchildren and several nieces and nephews. Besides his parents, he was predeceased by his wife, Sally Werge Farina; son, Edward Farina and his brother, Anthony Farina. Calling hours will take place on Wednesday from 5-7pm at the DeMarco-Stone Funeral Home, 1605 Helderberg Ave. in Rotterdam. A prayer service will begin on Thursday at 11am at the funeral home. Burial with military honors will follow at St. John the Baptist Cemetery in Schenectady.