Sylvia DIADAMO

Sylvia 'Moe' DiAdamo Leveille, 94 -- PORTLAND - How does a person write a loved one's obituary? An obituary is supposed to sum up a person's life into a paragraph or two; well, it can't be done. What I can give you are some of her stats and perhaps parrot a few of her philosophies. That will have to do, because the fact is that Sylvia DiAdamo Leveille, affectionately known as 'Moe' has passed on after 94 years of life.She was born in Lawrence, Mass., on Sept. 12, 1910, one of seven born to Italian immigrant parents. Her current family measured how old things were and when historic events happened by how old Moe was at the time. The thing is she was never old. She had a timeless spirit locked into an aging body. Her modus operandi was love. The eternal optimist, she saw and spoke of the best in a person, particularly her family which was her main focus. She said of her two daughters, 'Even though they're in their 60s now, I still can't get over the fact that they were born to me; I wanted them so badly.' We were all her 'gifts from God.' She received four grandchildren and four great grandchildren, with one on the way that she was very much looking forward to 'bouncing on her knee.' Her motto for children was, 'You can't spoil with love.'She was a player, but not in the sense that people mean it today. She played imaginatively with the children at any time for any length of time. It was on their schedule because, 'my time is my own' and at their level because, 'children need a lot of love.' One could see that she had played this way with four generations beginning with her three younger brothers, trying to make up for their losing their father at a very young age. She was a master at 'pretend' and she enjoyed drawing out her charge so that they expressed their own play ideas. She made you feel that you were the best in the world. This woman got it right. Even though she worked very hard for years and years in various factories, she remained focused on what happened after work and why she was earning a paycheck. I wish I had a penny for every time she said, 'I'm rich in love.'She would say in a dreamy voice about her husband of 54 years, Valere (Jack) Leveille, 'What a wonderful man.' He was completely devoted to her and they made a wonderful team. They spent their retirement years antiquing all over New England and attending and hosting family events. There was no accomplishment too insignificant to gain their attendance, admiration and praise. When he passed in 1992, Sylvia moved to Portland, Maine because, 'It was too hard to live with the memories in Methuen.' She moved geographically away from Boxford, Mass where her eldest daughter Valerie Leveille Johnson and her husband Alan live to a half mile away from her younger daughter, Norma Leveille Filler and her husband Mark. Although born and raised a Catholic, Sylvia embraced the faith of her younger daughter and husband and became quite involved and welcomed in the Jewish community of Portland. As she explained to the Christian side of her family, 'Jesus and the Blessed Mother were both Jewish and He grew up in temples just like these.' When she wasn't in Portland, she was visiting her eldest granddaughter, grandson-in-law and their two children in Mass, Virginia, Pennsylvania and then finally Connecticut. She would fly or take the bus, making friends along the way and staying for extended visits. She made sure she went to everyone's new digs when they moved because she wanted to be able to picture where they were when she talked to them on the phone.Everyone she came into contact with she blessed. When she spoke of someone when they weren't there, she followed it with, 'God bless'm.' She would remark on most mornings with a hint of awe in her voice, 'What a glorious day.' Sylvia thanked God for her blessings often and didn't take things for granted. When she made plans for a future event it was usually followed with, 'God willing.' God finally called her home on Aug. 6, 2005. Moe collapsed while entering her apartment escorted by her younger granddaughter and her granddaughter's boyfriend. Sylvia passed very quickly and gently in the arms of her loved one on a beautiful summer evening after spending a perfect day at the beach surrounded by her cherished family celebrating her 95th birthday a little early. We should all be so lucky. She will be greatly missed