Felicia (LoBalbo) Cacace, of the Bronx, NY, returned to the Lord on February 26, 2026. She was born to recently arrived Sicilian immigrants in East Harlem in 1923, when horse-drawn carriages roamed the streets. She lived a full, happy 102 years. That’s an eternity to some; for those close to her it was still too short.
Felicia – Fannie, to the countless people who knew and loved her – was called to the most challenging vocation in life: she created and cared for a family, putting others before herself day after day. Her home – and especially her dinner table – was always a place of gathering and community. She radiated warmth. You couldn’t help but smile in her company, charmed by her quick wit and disarmed by her playfully sarcastic tongue. Fannie created fellowship wherever she went; she was comfort and stability and security to all.
Fannie was the devoted wife to Ercole Cacace, who predeceased her in 2013. She is survived by her four sons: Chris, Bruce, Bobby, and Gerard. Six grandchildren meant the world to her – and she to them. For a time in each of their lives, she was a mother figure. Six great-grandchildren will carry on her memory. And she was “Aunt Fannie” to so many others, across generations and across the continent.
She often spoke fondly of her younger days, when she and her husband would paint the town dancing with friends and their many siblings. The Lindy Hop was Fannie's favorite dance, one she longed to do even after her body began to fail her. She’s smiling down on us now, as the Big Band tunes in heaven start to play for her.
