Lucia Carriero
December 13, 1924 — December 28, 2025
101 years of extraordinary life
Born in Catignano, Italy. Beloved seamstress, mother, and Nonna. A life woven with resilience, tradition, and love.
Birth
Lucia Cieri was born on December 13, 1924, in Catignano, Italy. Her mother, Filomena Falone, gave birth to her at home while her father, Giuseppe Cieri, was working in the United States.
First Journey to America
In 1925, when Lucia was less than a year old, she and her mother traveled to Paterson, New Jersey to join her father, who had first emigrated in 1907 at age 19 to find work. He had been going back and forth for years, sending money home to support his wife and children. The family returned to Italy in 1928 when Giuseppe became ill and wanted to leave.
Childhood in Italy
Growing up in Brecciarola, Lucia attended school until her father pulled her out after 6th grade to help with household chores. Despite the hardship, she developed skills that would serve her throughout her life.
War Years
During World War II, Lucia's father Giuseppe was working in Africa as a foreman in charge of Ethiopian laborers doing construction. The English captured him and held him as a prisoner for 5 years. When he finally returned, emaciated and unrecognizable, Lucia saw him first—a stranger without shoes at the fountain where she was getting water. She didn't recognize her own father until he asked for her mother by name. "For the love of God, save my father," she cried as the family nursed him back to health. During the German retreat through Italy, Lucia showed compassion by feeding hungry German foot soldiers passing through her town.
Coming to America
At 28 years old in 1953, Lucia returned to America alone—a brave journey following her brother Renato who emigrated first. She stayed with friends in Cliffside Park and Wappinger Falls before settling in Paterson, where she worked as a seamstress and supported herself with skill and determination. Her mother and father would follow later, and the family reunited in Paterson's large Italian community.
Marriage to Angelo
On August 2, 1959, Lucia married Angelo Carriero at the Madonna de le Piane Church in Chieti, Italy. Angelo, born August 13, 1924, in Montescaglioso, was introduced to Lucia through her brother Gabriel in what was essentially an arranged marriage. Angelo had worked for Pirelli as a truck driver in Italy before coming to America, where he ran large textile machinery for a manufacturer. He would bring home fabric scraps that Lucia used to sew clothes for the family.
Building a Home
After marrying, Lucia and Angelo returned to Paterson together, first renting an apartment on Madison Avenue. Within a year or two, in 1961, they purchased a 3-family home in Paterson, where they would live for decades. They also saved enough to buy a cherished summer home in Toms River, near Seaside Beach, where the family spent weekends and summer months together.
Career as a Seamstress
For many years, Lucia worked as a seamstress in a Paterson factory, sewing coats on an assembly line alongside other seamstresses who became dear friends. She worked with dedication and pride in her craft until retiring at age 62.
Retirement & Loss of Gabriel
Lucia retired at 62 from her seamstress work. Soon after her retirement, her brother Gabriel passed away on October 1, 1985. Angelo also retired around the same age.
Loss of Angelo and Filomena
After ten years of Angelo dealing with Alzheimer's disease, he needed to be placed in a nursing home. The family sold their Paterson home around 1993. Angelo passed away on August 11, 2001, at a nursing home in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, just two days before his 77th birthday. In the same year, Lucia's mother Filomena also passed away on July 28, 2001, at a nursing home in Wayne, New Jersey, at the remarkable age of 101. Lucia had always deeply admired her mother and often said she would live to be 101, just like her.
Red Bank
After selling the Paterson home, Lucia moved into an apartment in Red Bank, New Jersey, to be close to her daughter Maria. She lived there for about two years.
Holmdel Years
When Maria and her family bought a home in Holmdel, New Jersey, Lucia moved in with them. She spent nearly 24 cherished years there, surrounded by family and love. During these years, she devoted herself to helping raise her three beloved grandchildren, cooking her signature lentil soup and pasta for them, and lending a hand with household chores.
Final Chapter
In 2020, Lucia moved to Doylestown, Pennsylvania, where she spent her final years with her devoted son, Rocco, and daughter-in-law, Zaida, enjoying her favorite foods and the comfort of family. On December 28, 2025, just 15 days after her 101st birthday , Lucia peacefully passed away in her sleep. True to her word and her mother's legacy, she had reached 101 —a testament to her tenacious spirit and steadfast will. Through every trial and triumph, she had lived a full and extraordinary life, woven with resilience, love, and grace.