Marcella Jane (Rautanen) Capriccioso

Marcella "Marcy" Jane Capriccioso, age 62, passed away abruptly at Mary Washington Hospital in Fredericksburg, Virginia on May 12, 2015 after a valiant 15-month battle against pancreatic cancer. A long-time resident of Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, she had been receiving intensive treatments at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland and at Hematology-Oncology Associates of Fredericksburg. During her journey, she was proud to participate in studies aimed at improving the mortality rate of this particularly difficult cancer. In an effort to increase pancreatic cancer science focused on eradicating this disease, she encouraged support for the Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center at Johns Hopkins. "Sweet" is a word people often used to describe Marcy, but it does not do her justice. She was a strong, loving, funny and compassionate mother, wife, partner, daughter, sister, aunt, friend, and grandmother. She was a fighter, and her doctors in her final months and weeks often expressed amazement at her determination and progress in combating her disease. Throughout her life, she touched the lives of so many in a myriad of positive ways. The loved ones she left behind were truly blessed to know her, although for much too short a time. Marcy was born on May 25, 1 952 in Detroit, Michigan to Toivo Rautanen and Evelyn Sooks (LaPointe), who both preceded her in death, as did her brother, Melvin Rautanen. She graduated from Sault Area High School in 1970 after moving as a teenager to the Sault from Chicago, Illinois with her mother, whose family was from Drummond Island, Michigan. She later attended Lake Superior State University in the Sault, taking classes in business administration. Marcy formerly worked for the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians as an administrative assistant in the substance abuse department and as a pharmacy technician, a position she retired from in 2012. She was previously a licensed cosmetologist; an administrative assistant at the Sault Schools Alternative Education Building; a fill-in assistant at her late husband's law firm; and a dedicated homemaker for much of the 1980s and 1990s. Her earnings as a nurse technician at South Chicago Community Hospital in the 1970s helped put her late husband through law school. While raising her family, she belonged to the Ladies Auxiliary of the Christopher Columbus Hall in the Sault, and she took part in various quilting, knitting, crafting, genealogy, and gardening clubs over the years. She was a lifelong citizen of the Sault Tribe and took much pride in her Native American heritage. Her Anishinaabe name was Awangkwe, which means "Woman of the Fog." It was a name that delighted her, partly for its mysterious connotations. She is survived by her long-time partner, Daniel Harwood, and her sister, Melva Payment, both of the Sault, as well as several nieces and nephews. Her husband, the late Robert Capriccioso of the Sault, whom she met at a Sherman Park dance in 1968 and married in 1973, passed away in 1992. With Robert, she had three children who survive her: Robert Capriccioso II, married to Katrina Morgan in Fredericksburg, Virginia; David Capriccioso, married to Samantha Sawruk in Bowie, Maryland; and Jena Capriccioso of Traverse City, Michigan. At the time of her passing, she had four grandchildren: Robert and Katrina's children, Bella Grace and Loretto Arthur; and David and Samantha's children, Olesia Mae and Audrey June. She alternated between her sons' homes during the early stages of her treatment, and she resided with her son Robert and his family during her final months. One of her greatest sources of joy was spending time with her grandchildren. Marcy's viewing will be held at Clark Bailey Newhouse Funeral Home of the Sault on Friday, May 22, 2015 from 4 - 7 p.m. Her funeral will take place at St. Joseph's Church in the Sault, where she was a long-time parishioner, on Saturday, May 23, 2015 at 11 a.m. Her burial will follow at Riverside Cemetery in the Sault, where she will be laid to rest next to her late husband, in fulfillment of her wishes. The funeral and burial will be followed by a luncheon celebration of her life at the Sault Tribe Niigaanagiizhik Ceremonial Building at 11 Ice Circle. The luncheon is being graciously hosted by the Payment family, as well as Kris Harwood-Causley, daughter of Daniel Harwood, and her family. Condolences may be shared with the family by contacting the funeral home at clarkbaileynewhouse.com.

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Marcella Jane (Rautanen) Capriccioso

May 25, 1952 - May 12, 2015