March 24, 1944 – January 17, 2024

Funeral services for Albertha “Birdie” Talarico, 79, of Proctor, Minn., will be held at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 27, 2024, at Sunrise Funeral Home, 4798 Miller Trunk Highway, Hermantown, Minn. Visitation will be held from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. preceding the funeral. Albertha passsed away on January 13, 2024.

The first smiling adult thousands of children saw for thousands of days and the last before they got home each night. Braving the weather, early mornings, late nights, field trips, away games, parades, and more, always diligent for their safety.  This was Birdie’s world as a school bus driver for almost 40 years.

Albertha “Birdie” Talarico, 79, of Proctor, Minn., passed away in the early hours on January 13, 2024 in her daughter’s home in Ohio.

Birdie was born in Slayton, Minn., to Cornelius and Helen Sankey on March 24. She was raised and attended school in Chandler, Minn. Throughout her life she worked a variety of jobs, from washing laundry and rolling hair for the church ladies as a child, to short order cook as a young adult, honing her well-known cooking skills.

The career that meant the most to her though was driving school bus. The majority of her driving career was for the Proctor School District, where she served almost 40 years. She served multiple terms as a past president for the Holy Apostles Episcopal Church Women (ECW) Guild and the Proctor School Bus Drivers Association. Over the years she also served her community as a foster parent and distributing food to those in need. She was a skilled gardener, canner, baker, quilter, and lover of flowers, birds, and dogs.

Birdie is survived by her children, Carmella (Tim), Dawn (Paul), Shawn (Pam), and Vince; grandchildren, Myranda (Levi), Catianna, and Galianna; great-granddaughter Vienna; and sister, Josephine (Don-deceased).

Birdie was preceded in death by her husband, Wadeno Talarico, Jr., and her parents.