Anita Lanciani

Anita (Brooks) Lanciani

Sterling - Anita M. (Brooks) Lanciani, 93, beloved wife of the late Henry N. Lanciani, passed away peacefully at her home surrounded by her loving family on Friday, January 3, 2019. Born and raised in Fitchburg, she was a daughter of Leon and Valerie (Francoeur) Brooks.

Anita was a professional cake decorator, worked in the family business, Henry N. Lanciani Sales for many years, and was best known as a loving and dedicated homemaker. She was a devoted member of St. Richard of Chichester Church and the Sterling Library Knitting Group. She enjoyed baking, knitting and was well known for her cream puffs, pies and pizzelles.

She will be lovingly missed and remembered by her two daughters, Paula J. (Saucier) Lanciani and Sheila A. Lanciani, both of Sterling; her brother, Robert Brooks of Leominster, three grandchildren, Thomas D. Saucier, Michael S. Saucier and Henry J. Hawkins; six great-grandchildren, Maya L. Saucier, Jackson A. Saucier, Christina M. Saucier, Elizabeth T. Saucier, Ethan A. Hawkins and Aidan Q. Hawkins; and several nieces and nephews. In addition to her husband Henry, to whom she was married 59 years, she was predeceased by her two brothers, Norman and Charles Brooks and four sisters, Loretta McWhinney, Rita Phelps, Lorraine White and Beverly Lavallee.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, January 7 at St. Richard of Chichester Church, 4 Bridge Street, Sterling. Burial will follow at Hillside Cemetery, Sterling. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105. Arrangements are under the care of the Miles-Sterling Funeral and Tribute Center, 100 Worcester Road, Sterling. To share a memory or offer an online condolence, please visit

www.milesfuneralhome.com