Liberata "Libby" DiVecchio

Liberata/Libby (Brandolino) DiVecchio passed into eternity to be with our Lord on July 16, 2020 after a ten-year courageous battle with lymphomas.  She was born on September 11, 1935 to Fiore and Linduccia Brandolino in San Vittorino, a little town nestled in the mountains of Italy.  Life was difficult there and Liberata often told stories of being raised in a small village with none of the luxuries we are all accustomed to.  At the age of 18 she immigrated to America and a new life.  It was in America that she married her husband John DiVecchio and in May they celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary.  Besides her devoted husband John, she leaves behind her two loving sons and their wives, Eugene (Charlene Parks) and John (Andrea Fazio), grandchildren Michael DiVecchio, Sara DiVecchio, Danielle (Jason) Adolph and Natalie (Adam) Parrish and great grandchildren Landon and Eliana Adolph and Andrew, Gianna and Briella Parrish. She is also survived by her brothers Antonio/Tony (Angelina deceased), Vincenzo/Vince (Elizabeth) and Sabatino/Sam (Carol) and many nieces, nephews and cousins. She is preceded by her parents, sister and brother-in-law Maria (Francesco) Carusi.

Libby was a wonderful cook, and everything was made from scratch.  Her family loved her homemade pasta, but it was her ravioli that made all the holidays special.  No recipe was ever written down and measurements were made by various sized cups and glasses.  No traditional measuring cups were used by her!  Our versions will never taste the same.  She made delicious cookies especially her pizzelle and “S” cookies.  Her little great grandchildren called her Grandma Libby with the pizzelle’s and pizza bread.  True to her Italian heritage, she loved the tarantella, and whenever she heard it, she had to get up and dance! You wouldn’t find her sitting often, but when she did she always had a crochet hook or knitting needles in her hand.  She created beautiful blankets, baby sweaters, hats and booties, and a variety of other things all from her head.  She never used a pattern; she would see something she liked and would figure out a way to make it.

While primarily a homemaker, Libby did work a few jobs including being a seamstress for Al Baskin and she retired from Joliet Central High School where she worked in the cafeteria for many years.

A devout Catholic, she was a member of the Church of St. Anthony ever since she arrived in America.  She was also an active member of the American Italian Cultural Society and she could be found volunteering at their monthly spaghetti dinners and the Festa Italiana.  Preserving her heritage and the Italian culture was especially important to her and she enjoyed going to the “club” to spend time with all her friends.

The family thanks the doctors, nurses and staff at Northwestern Medicine and the University of Chicago along with Joliet Area Community Hospice for their professional medical and compassionate care.

Visitation will be held at Tezak Home to Celebrate Life on Sunday July 19, 2020 from 1:00pm – 5:00pm.  Due to the COVID 19 pandemic only 50 people will be allowed in at a time and masks must be worn.

Private funeral services will be held at the Church of St. Anthony on Monday July 20, 2020 at 10:30am.  It will be livestreamed via the Church of St. Anthony Facebook page.

Donations made in Liberata’s name can be made to Joliet Area Community Hospice, The American Italian Cultural Society Scholarship Fund, Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University, or University of Chicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center at Silver Cross.