Lauretta M. Alberti, 82, of Bethany Beach, Del., formerly of Montgomery County, Md., passed away on Saturday, Aug. 13, 2016, at Beebe Healthcare in Lewes, Del. She was born Feb. 17, 1934, daughter of the late Nelson VanDercook and Amelia (Barr) VanDercook.
Alberti was a 1952 graduate of Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring, Md., where she was proud to be the first female sports editor for the school’s newspaper. She married Dominick Lynch Alberti Sr. in 1953 at St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church in Silver Spring, where they and most of their children attended elementary school. Alberti had recently attended the 70th-year reunion with her classmates.
Alberti and her husband were a driving force behind the founding and success of the Alberti Van & Storage Company Inc. and Mercury Van Lines, which was a family-run business until their retirement. Her family was her true passion. She was a loving mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, and took great pride in all their accomplishments.
Alberti and her husband retired to their summer home in Middlesex Beach, Del., where she became deeply involved in her community. Alberti was the treasurer of the Bethany Town Cats, an organization founded by her daughter, Lauren, that serves to reduce the feral cat population through a spay-and-neuter program in the Bethany Beach area.
Another passion was politics. Alberti served as the 4th Election District chairman for state Rep. Ron Gray’s 38th District. She was the co-founder of the reconstituted and current 38th District Republican Club, as well as a past Republican chairman for the 38th District.
As a member of the Sussex County Republican Committee, Alberti was a faithful attendee of executive committee meetings and a member of the Rules Committee and twice helped rewrite the rules for GOP operations. She also tirelessly worked for the Sussex County Republican Women’s Club.
At the state level, she was elected as a delegate to the Republican National Convention and was awarded the Peg Hood award at the state convention for her accomplishments and tremendous efforts to elect Republicans throughout Delaware.
Alberti enjoyed gardening and coordinating all of her high school class reunions and was an avid sports fan, never missing a Maryland Terrapins basketball or Washington Redskins football game. She will be remembered as a loving, caring, good-natured and hardworking woman who always put her family first.
In addition to her parents, Alberti was preceded in death by her husband, Dominick Lynch Alberti Sr., in 2005. She is survived by her six children, Dominick Lynch Alberti Jr. of Lexington, Va., Lauren Alberti and her significant other, Robert Hush, of Bethany Beach, Del., Lynette Alberti and her husband, William Twark, of Glocester, R.I., Leslie Alberti and her husband, Lee Waite, of Rye, N.Y., Louisa Stack and her husband, Thomas, of Damascus, Md., and David Alberti of Charleston, S.C.; a brother, Joseph VanDercook and his wife, Chris, of Millsboro, Del.; nine grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren.
A Mass of Christian Burial was scheduled for Aug. 17, 2016, at St. Ann Catholic Church, Bethany Beach, Del. Interment will be held privately at the Delaware Veterans Memorial Cemetery, Millsboro, Del. In lieu of flowers, the family suggested memorial contributions to Bethany Town Cats; P.O. Box 911; Bethany Beach, DE 19930, or to the Fenwick Island Lions Club; Attn. King Lion Richard Waughtal; 29793 Colony Dr.; Dagsboro, DE 19939. Condolences may be sent online at www.melsonfuneralservices.com.