Marie Frugone (1889 – June 16, 1953), later Marie Frugone Scileppi, was an American journalist and community leader, who wrote for the ''

Brooklyn Daily Eagle :''This article covers both the historical newspaper (1841–1955, 1960–1963), as well as an unrelated new Brooklyn Daily Eagle starting 1996 published currently'' The ''Brooklyn Eagle'' (originally joint name ''The Brooklyn Eagle'' and ''King ...

'' and the ''

Brooklyn Times-Union The ''Brooklyn Times-Union'' was an American newspaper published from 1848 to 1937. Launched in 1848 as the ''Williamsburgh Daily Times'', the publication became the ''Brooklyn Daily Times'' when the cities of Brooklyn and Williamsburg were un ...

'' in the 1930s. She worked with the

Red Cross The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million Volunteering, volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure re ...

in France and Italy during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Early life

Marie Frugone was born in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, the daughter of Frank L. Frugone and Rosa Varni Frugone. Her father, who was born in Italy, was publisher of the ''Bolletino Della Sera'', an Italian-language newspaper in New York.

Career

Frugone was secretary to the Sheriff of Kings County. She advocated for Italian-American culture and residents of Brooklyn. She worked with the Red Cross in France and Italy during World War I, using her Italian language skills as "interpreter, entertainer, and nurse" in tuberculosis hospitals. She was decorated by the

Italian Red Cross The Italian Red Cross (IRC, it, Croce Rossa Italiana or ''CRI'') is the Italian national Red Cross society. The Italian Red Cross was one of the original founding members of the International Committee of the Red Cross in 1919. History Early h ...

and the

American Red Cross The American Red Cross (ARC), also known as the American National Red Cross, is a non-profit humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief, and disaster preparedness education in the United States. It is the desi ...

for her wartime service. After the war, she was active in the Italian World War Veterans' Committee. In 1920, Frugone campaigned for

Warren G. Harding Warren Gamaliel Harding (November 2, 1865 – August 2, 1923) was the 29th president of the United States, serving from 1921 until his death in 1923. A member of the Republican Party, he was one of the most popular sitting U.S. presidents. A ...

, and was a member of the Naturalization Committee of the Overseas Girls, women volunteering to do clerical work to help clear paperwork overloads and speed the legal processes for immigrants. One report said that she helped over a thousand people a year become United States citizens. Frugone started her journalism career at her father's newspaper before World War I. She wrote about women and politics for the ''Times Union'' and ''Brooklyn Daily Eagle'' newspapers in the 1920s and 1930s, in a column titled "With the Women Voters". In 1937, her column was renamed "With the Women's Clubs". Frugone was director of the Little Italy Neighborhood House and the Richmond Hill Settlement House in

Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

. She chaired the Brooklyn branch of the

Italian Welfare League The Italian Welfare League is an American charitable organization founded in 1920 and incorporated in 1922 by Italian-American women. Its original purpose was to assist Italian veterans of World War I, and later, needy Italian residents of New York ...

, the Women's Auxiliary of the United Italian Social Service Foundation, and the Women's Auxiliary of the Boys Club of the Navy Yard district.

Personal life

Marie Frugone married Francis Paul Scileppi in 1924. They had a daughter, Francine Scileppi Petruzzi, born a few months after Francis died in 1926. Marie Frugone Scileppi died in 1953, aged 64 years, in Brooklyn.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Frugone, Marie American women journalists American women in World War I 1889 births 1953 deaths Journalists from Brooklyn American people of Italian descent