A lifelong Morgan Hill resident and devoted volunteer to several
Morgan Hill schools, died Monday. Julie Pusateri, 45, a graduate of
Live Oak High School, died from complications from a pulmonary
embolism after routine foot surgery.
Morgan Hill – A lifelong Morgan Hill resident and devoted volunteer to several Morgan Hill schools, died Monday. Julie Pusateri, 45, a graduate of Live Oak High School, died from complications from a pulmonary embolism after routine foot surgery. The suddenness of her death has shocked many in the community.Â
The barely 5-foot, feisty mother of three has been described by friends as a “dynamo,” and “a force of nature.”
Scheduled for a routine appointment July 5 following her foot surgery, Pusateri was apparently preparing to go to the doctor when a blood clot broke off from her foot or leg and traveled to her lung. Her youngest son, Daniel, 12, found her on the floor and ran across the street to get friend and neighbor Barbara Campbell.
Pusateri was taken to Saint Louise Regional Hospital but never regained consciousness. Several brain scans were conducted, but she had no brain activity. She was kept on life support through the weekend.Â
Pusateri built many enduring friendships, as evidenced by the overflow crowd Johnson Funeral Home Wednesday evening. Â
Pusateri worked for years as a surgical nurse in San Jose. She was the health clerk at Sobrato High School during the 2006-07 school year.
In her volunteer life, she served in every capacity of the El Toro Elementary Home and School Club, and she worked in the school’s workroom, classrooms and as a classroom aide.Â
“She stepped in as secretary, and she was also involved with Grad Night,” said Live Oak Principal Nick Boden. “She was always dependable.
She is survived by her husband Nick; sons Jonathan, 18, who graduated from Live Oak in June, Nicholas, 14, who completed the eighth grade at Martin Murphy in June, and Daniel, 12, who will be a seventh grader at Martin Murphy in the fall.
