Mary Lucia (“Lu”) LaPorte, age 92, of Boynton Beach, Florida, passed peacefully after a short bout with cancer on June 7, 2024.
Born in 1931 to Pierina and Ellis (“Pedro”) Manzolati, Lu graduated from Gouverneur High School in 1948 and then earned an Associate’s Degree from Central City Business Institute. Lu married Bruce LaPorte in 1954 and together they raised five children while living in the Dunkirk/Fredonia area of New York.
Although she served as Executive Secretary to several high-level directors – titles and superlatives weren’t particularly important to Lu. A quiet source of strength to her husband and family, she worked tirelessly in support of Bruce’s many projects and ventures. After raising their children, she & Bruce moved to Arkwright NY where they grew potatoes on their small Gravity Hill farm. Locals may remember them as antique dealers who specialized in selling primitive lamps & tools. When a stroke paralyzed Bruce’s right side in 1992, Lu was his caregiver through the long years of disability and decline. He passed in 2007.
Lu is survived by her son, Michael (Linda) LaPorte of Roseville, MI; three daughters, Michele (Charles) Grammer of Eden, NY, Jo-Anne LaPorte of Boynton Beach, FL, and Lucia Lynn (Robert Mekus) LaPorte also of Boynton Beach, FL; 3 grandchildren: Milo Meghan (KC Sea) Grammer, Julie (Steven) Frontera, and Nathan (Kim Weston) Grammer; 2 great grandchildren, Anthony and Annabelle Frontera; 1 sister, Ida (John) Langtry; and several nieces and nephews. Besides her parents and beloved husband of 52 years, she was preceded in death by her son Jay LaPorte in 1985.
A private service and burial will be held at Cowden Cemetery in Arkwright, NY at a future date.