By Tom Momberg
More than 200 family members and friends of Laura Finamore gathered for her funeral at St. Anastasia Roman Catholic Church in Douglaston Monday morning six days after the devastating Amtrak derailment that took her life and the lives of seven others.
The overwhelming number of people had come to show their respects and share their memories of the Douglaston native goes to show how many lives she touched in her lifetime.
Finamore, 47, was the managing director of the Cushman Wakefield real estate firm, where she worked for seven years, and was a resident of Manhattan. But she grew up in northeast Queens, and was a graduate of Benjamin Cardozo High School. She was an alumna of George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
Finamore’s wake was held over the weekend at Fairchild and Sons Funeral Home, which also arranged Monday’s funeral service at St. Anastasia. By special request from her family, the Rev. Frank Tummino delivered the sermon for the Mass. He said this national tragedy has an even more profound impact at home.
“It dawned on me that unlike so many other people, Laura is not just one of those pictures on the news,” Tummino said. “She is someone real to each of us here today. As someone that is real, we all have that desire to let people know that this is truly a summering struggle. But we can also let them know, as people of faith, that this is not the end.”
Laura Finamore is survived by her parents, Cynthia and Richard Finamore, her three brothers, Michael, Paul and Peter Finamore, as well as seven nieces and nephews.
Her family asked that any gifts be donated to the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Finamore’s name.
Reach reporter Tom Momberg by e-mail at tmomb
