Louisa Del Vecchio Sierpina

Louisa Del Vecchio Sierpina, known as Louise, passed away peacefully on Easter Sunday, April 5th. She was 98 and greatly loved. Louise was born in Stamford to Raffaele (Ralph) and Madeline (Compolattaro) Del Vecchio and grew up on the West Side in an “all-Italian” neighborhood. She cherished her multi-generational family, which included older brothers Salvatore, Frank (Snooky) and Louis and her grandparents. Louise enjoyed sharing memories from her youth that sounded like they came out of the movies of the 1930s and 1940s – the only heat in her family’s apartment was from the oil-burning stove in the kitchen that also helped warm the clothes that had been scrubbed clean on a washboard; wine-making with relatives; a daily dinner menu that repeated each week (Monday - soup, Tuesday – macaroni, etc!) and huge Sunday dinners with family from NY who came twice a month for pasta, eggplants, artichokes, sausage and peppers and espresso and pastries. Her job was to set the table and wash dishes. She loved to play baseball and roller skate with neighborhood friends. Louise was a good tap dancer and roller skater and loved to dance. She was a proud graduate of Hart, Stevens, Cloonan and Stamford High School Class of 1945, where she met the love of her life, Theodore (Ted) Sierpina Sr. They were married at Sacred Heart Church. Louise worked several jobs while raising her three children, including at Machlett Laboratories, Grade A Market and St. John’s Pharmacy. She was a dedicated fan of the UConn women’s basketball team and the NY Yankees and rarely missed watching their games on television.

Louise was always a caregiver for family and friends. She also was a devoted volunteer with the Parents & Friends of the Lower Fairfield Regional Center in Norwalk and at St. Camillus long-term care facility, where she enjoyed bringing the female residents to their hair appointments and attending church with them. She was devoted to her Catholic faith.

Nothing brought Louise more joy than attending her sons’ baseball and touch football games and subsequently the games, dance recitals, events and school performances of her five granddaughters and nine great-grandchildren.

Louise will be remembered for her love and hugs, her delicious cooking (especially pasta, eggplants, beef soup, pumpkin and ricotta pies and pizzelli and other cookies!), the M&M dispenser on the kitchen table, her perseverance during hard times, her independence, and especially her kindness. She was a role model for all.

Louise was predeceased by her beloved family of origin and devoted husband, Ted. She is survived by her cherished sons Michael (Melanie) and Ted Jr. (Diane) and her daughter, LuAnn; grandchildren Kristyn (Kris) O’Brien, Kate (Billy) Barford, Shannon Sierpina, Nicole (Tom) Landry and Amy (Thomas) Deverson and great-grandchildren Mikey, Maggie and Molly O’Brien; William and Grayson Barford; Brady, Hunter and Colton Landry and Zoe Deverson. She is also survived by her cousins Madeline and Joe Longo, who were like a sister and brother to her, and many devoted nieces, nephews and their children.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Friday, April 10th at 10:30 am at Sacred Heart Church on Schuyler Avenue, Stamford. Burial will follow at Fairfield Memorial Park on Oaklawn Avenue in Stamford. In lieu of flowers, please consider a gift in Louise’s memory to Parents & Friends of Lower Fairfield Regional Center, 146 Silvermine Ave., Norwalk, CT 06850. Attn: Cindy Stramandinoli.

The family would like to give special thanks to Dr. Heather Sung, the palliative care staff at Stamford Hospital and the care givers at Fairfield County Hospice House in Stamford for their extraordinary care of Louise and her family.