Mario and Marilyn Balconi

This beautiful mausoleum at Sandusky's Oakland Cemetery honors the memory of Mario Henry Balconi, who died on March 23, 2003, and his wife Marilyn E. Balconi, who died on May 15, 2004. An obituary for for Mario H. Balconi, which appeared in the March 28, 2003 issue of the Toledo Blade, reported that Mario Balconi and his brother Geno were the second generation owners of a family run monument business. Mario and Geno's father, Frank Balconi and his brother, started making memorial monuments in the late 1910's. The business was first known as the Sandusky Monumental Co., and later the name was changed to Balconi Monuments, Inc. (Several members of the Balconi family were connected with the monument business in Sandusky, with at least two different businesses associated with monument making. The historical Sandusky City Directories housed at the Sandusky Library can detail the specific names, dates, and locations of Balconi family members who were monument makers.)

Geno Balconi's obituary, which also appeared in the Toledo Blade, stated that Frank and Carmella moved to the United States from their native Italy while they were still in their twenties. Mario and Geno Balconi took over the family business after the death of their father Frank, with Mario running the office and designing the monuments, and Geno working as the salesman. Mario and Geno Balconi retired in the 1980's, and now the next generations of the Balconi family run the family business, located at the corner of Perkins Avenue and Milan Road in Sandusky, Ohio. Besides making memorial monuments and markers, Balconi's also specializes in granite for use in homes, businesses, and gardens.












You can read Mario and Geno Balconi's obituaries at the Toledo Blade, which is accessible via the Google News Archive. Memorial monuments made by the Balconi family can be seen in cemeteries throughout Sandusky and Erie County.