Fortunata Passannante

Fortunata, better known as “Lee” to many, died July 10, 2022. She was 101 and just shy of her 102nd birthday. She was born on August 18, 1920 in Port Morris, New Jersey to Giulio and Andriana (neé Napolitano) Licciardiello who emigrated from Qualiano, Italy. Her parents owned a popular Italian grocery store in Port Morris where Lee grew up working alongside her two brothers and six sisters. Lee loved to share memories of the grocery with her family including fond recollections of her with her siblings running the deli, cleaning and stocking the store, and working in her mother’s bountiful garden filled with tomatoes, escarole, and other vegetables that Lee would clean and prepare with her mother. For Lee, her connection to cooking was at the heart of raising a family, hosting hundreds of dinners throughout her life, and was a part of her day-to-day as friends and family dropped by. She always had something homemade to offer everyone and you could hardly get through the front door before Lee had food on the stove and your place set at the table. Lee’s homemade sauce, meatballs and gnocchi were always on the menu. Her homemade soup, which she often credited for her long life, will be missed by all. Not a day passed where Lee didn’t mention at least one of her siblings. Her brothers and sisters all preceded her in death and included: Madeline (Molly, born in Italy), Julia, Antoinette, Carmella, Evelyn, Dominic, Stephen, and Bettina (Betty). Many of her siblings were hair dressers and owned businesses and those stories, too, became part of the rich history of the Licciardiello’s Italian-American working class roots that shaped Lee’s life. She passed down these treasured stories as gifts to her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. As a young woman during World War II, she worked for the U.S. Army Picatinny Arsenal where she was assigned everything from the mail room to making bullets. She married the love of her life, Francis “Nick” Nicholas Passannante from New York on May 6, 1944 and raised a family of four sons in Netcong, New Jersey. Nick and Lee resided in New Port Richey, Florida during the 1980s where they made many friends and memories along the beaches of the Gulf coast. Retiring to Arlington Heights, Illinois, Lee nurtured many more friendships and loved spending time at Camelot Pool. She loved being outside and getting a tan by the pool while listening to her portable radio. Lee was an avid walker and biker and rode her bike well into her seventies and drove her car well into her nineties. Lee was a member of St. Edna’s Catholic Church in Arlington Heights and devout to her Catholic faith and just as she was always ready to offer someone food, she would also offer prayer and friendship. Family was the most important aspect of Lee’s life. She loved spending time with her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Fortunata was preceeded in death by her husband, Francis, and two of her sons, Caesar and Julio. Lee is survived by her sons Stephen (Marsha DeLord Passannante), Anthony (Sue Mott) and daughter in-law Bonnie Doud Passannante. Grandchildren Frances, Diane (Robert), Stephen (Melissa), Nicholas (Maria Teresa), Joseph (Monika), Michelle (James), Anthony, Shannon (Reggie), Dominick, Adrianna, and James. Great grandchildren include Katherine Faye, Coco, Dane, Summer, Nicholas, Mia, Alexis, Giuseppe, Anthony, James, Siena, Olivia, Vincent, Gemma, and Ryan. Services will be held on Monday, July 18, 2022 at Matz Funeral Home in Arlington Heights, IL. Visitation will be from 9 a.m. – 11 a.m. and a prayer service at 11 a.m.

Fortunata Passannante

August 18, 1920 - July 10, 2022