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Lillian (Bodnaruk) Bruni

Lillian Bruni passed on to eternal life on December 2nd, 2020 at the age of 97. Lillian was the last of her generation and the beloved matriarch of her large, tight-knit family. She is joined in Heaven by her husband, Louis J. Bruni; her son, Michael T. Bruni; her cherished parents, Alec and Anna Bodnaruk; and her much-loved brothers and sisters, Andrew, John, Tommy, Victoria, and Maria. She leaves behind her children, Thomas M. Bruni and his partner Kay Onan of Roslindale; Carol A. Bruni of Melrose; Stephan L. Bruni of Gray, Maine; and Susan Maria Lagorio of Amesbury. Lillian will be dearly missed by her loving grandchildren: Cathleen Forand and her husband Eric, Christine Fiorentino and her husband Thomas, Michael Bruni and his wife Lauren, Eric Bruni, Stephan Bruni, Maria Gritz and her husband Clayton, Peter Lagorio, and Gregory Lagorio. Lillian was blessed with eleven great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews who will remember her fondly.

Family and friends alike remember Lillian’s joy, unconditional love, acceptance, generosity, patience, respect for traditions, and sense of humor. She loved parties, dancing, cooking, especially recipes from her Ukrainian heritage, babies, hugs, the smell of fresh basil, shopping, nature, and, most of all, her family. She was quick to compliment, a gifted storyteller, and a social butterfly. Lillian kept a well-stocked pantry and was glad to see her grandchildren and their friends rummaging through it whenever they liked. At the dinner table, she encouraged us to eat to our heart’s content and to laugh often, and her sassy humor was often accompanied by the wink of an eye. Lillian frequently encouraged us to “take care of each other.” Lillian had quite the sense of adventure and was able to travel with her husband and friends often. Most notably, at the age of 87 she embarked on a trip of a lifetime to Ukraine, which included a 12-hour train ride from Kiev to her father’s childhood village. There, she was welcomed by many members of her extended family whom she met for the very first time.

Baba, we will always Love You More.

The family will have a private funeral service.

Should friends and family desire, remembrances may be made to the March of Dimes, Donation Processing Center, P.O. Box 673667, Marietta, GA 30006, in honor of Lillian’s love of babies.

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2 Messages Send your condolences
  1. Kathy Brennan McMenimen
    Jan 2 2021

    Tom:
    I’m sorry for the loss of your dear Mother, and want you to know
    I’m thinking of you and your family. If “Big John” were here, he’d
    be sending the same. Sincere sympathy.

  2. Marie Fletcher
    Dec 30 2020

    To the Bruno Family
    My sincere condolences on the passing of your Mom . Lillian was one of the sweetest people I had the pleasure of knowing . My thoughts are with you.

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To all our families, friends, and residents of Revere, East Boston, and surrounding communities of the North Shore,

We would like to announce that after 37 years of caring for thousands of families at our 773 Broadway location, on January 31st, 2023 we will be officially RELOCATING, to our new location at 262 Beach St., Revere.
On September 30th, 2022, we proudly purchased the Vazza “Beechwood” Funeral Home – DiPietro and Vazza, Inc. A name that has served families for 102 years. We feel blessed that with all of the interest, the Vazza Family chose us to carry on their century old business and family name. We will become Vertuccio Smith & Vazza, Beechwood Home for Funerals. We will continue to honor the Vazza name and continue our commitment the same way that we always have. We also look forward to having both Louis Vazza and Jessica Vazza Ferragamo alongside of us, as we come together as one.
Our reputation has always been our biggest asset. For many years people always wanted us to have a larger facility, now our facility is the largest funeral home in the area. We will be making many beautiful upgrades to allow our families to have the most elegant facility to honor their loved one.
Although this announcement is bittersweet, as we say goodbye to our home, we are forever grateful for all of you for placing your constant faith and trust in us to care for your loved one. We will continue to do what we are best known for.
Thank you for your friendship and continued support.
God bless you all.
Faithfully,

Your friends at Vertuccio Smith and Vazza.

To all our families, friends, and residents of Revere, East Boston, and surrounding communities of the North Shore,

We would like to announce that after 37 years of caring for thousands of families at our 773 Broadway location, on January 31st, 2023 we will be officially RELOCATING, to our new location at 262 Beach St., Revere.

On September 30th, 2022, we proudly purchased the Vazza “Beechwood” Funeral Home – DiPietro and Vazza, Inc. A name that has served families for 102 years. We feel blessed that with all of the interest, the Vazza Family chose us to carry on their century old business and family name. We will become Vertuccio Smith & Vazza, Beechwood Home for Funerals. We will continue to honor the Vazza name and continue our commitment the same way that we always have. We also look forward to having both Louis Vazza and Jessica Vazza Ferragamo alongside of us, as we come together as one.

Our reputation has always been our biggest asset. For many years people always wanted us to have a larger facility, now our facility is the largest funeral home in the area. We will be making many beautiful upgrades to allow our families to have the most elegant facility to honor their loved one.

Although this announcement is bittersweet, as we say goodbye to our home, we are forever grateful for all of you for placing your constant faith and trust in us to care for your loved one. We will continue to do what we are best known for.

Thank you for your friendship and continued support.

God bless you all.

Faithfully,

Your friends at Vertuccio Smith and Vazza.