Lynn Marie Cuccia Pardini

1954 - 2011

LYNN MARIE CUCCIA PARDINI

1954 - 2011

On December 8, 2011, Lynn Marie Cuccia Pardini left this mortal world for the ever-after, her sudden and unexpected departure, leaving those who knew her reeling in grief and sorrow, but cherishing the memory of a woman who embodied the very essence of life itself.

The oldest daughter of Phil and Sara Cuccia, Lynn was born in Sacramento on February 28, 1954. She grew up in Willows, where she graduated from Willows High School. She subsequently attended Chico State, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and a minor in Italian.

In 1987, she married Dr. Daniel Pardini at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Chico. In 1995, they traveled to China and adopted their daughter, Madeleine Jin Bo.

For many years, Lynn managed her husband's medical practice. She was also involved with the National Charity League and the Butte Glenn Medical Alliance, as well as fundraising for St. John's Notre Dame elementary school, where she was affectionately known as a "scrip chick."

Lynn was a connoisseur of fine wine and haute cuisine who equally enjoyed a cold beer and ribs barbecued in the backyard, a lover of music, whose tastes ranged from the classical to plaintive Hawaiian melodies plucked on the ukulele, an intrepid traveler, who found her way to Paris, China and Australia, as well as to her family's ancestral homes in the Azores and Sicily, where she developed a deep appreciation for the values and traditions of those cultures. She would also wanted to be remembered as a staunch Democrat and passionate San Francisco Giants fan.

But above all else, Lynn loved her family - from her beloved husband, Dan and daughter, Maddy, to the extended Amaro and Cuccia clans, particularly her female cousins, who proudly call themselves the "cabras," now drawn so much closer together by a profound sense of loss.

A woman of uncommon warmth and generosity with an indefatigable sense of humor, Lynn will never be forgotten. All those who knew and loved her wish her god speed as she journeys to her final reward.

She is survived by her father, Phil Cuccia of Chico; her husband, Daniel and daughter, Madeleine of Chico; her sisters, Julie Cuccia and Christine Cuccia, and brother-in-law, Ken Conner of San Francisco; her stepson, Dr. Aaron Pardini, his wife, Julie and daughter, Emma of Eugene, Oregon; Mr. Dustin Pardini and his wife, Dr. Jamie Pardini of Pittsburg, Pennsylvania; and her stepdaughter, Sara Pardini of Chico.

A Funeral Mass will be held Friday morning, Dec. 16, 2011 at 11:00 a.m. at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, 416 Chestnut Street, Chico.

A reception will follow at 1:00 p.m. at the Manzanita Place (formerly the Elks Lodge), 1705 Manzanita Avenue, Chico.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to the Half the Sky Foundation, which provides care for orphaned children in China, or the Handi-Riders of Northern California, which provides therapeutic horseback riding to children and adults. The Half the Sky Foundation may be contacted at 715 Hearst Avenue, Suite 200, Berkeley, CA 94710 or at www.halfthesky.org. The Handi-Riders of Northern California may be contacted at P.O. Box 1885, Chico, CA 95927 or at www.handi-riders.org. Services are in care of Newton-Bracewell Chico Funeral Home.

To view obituary and send condolences to the family go online to nbcfh.com.