Nicole Genereux Acerbi
1972 - 2021
Nicole L. Acerbi, 49, of Litchfield, CT passed away peacefully on August 11, 2021 at Hartford Hospital after a brief illness. Nicole was the wife of John T. Acerbi and only child of Paul and Claire Genereux of Stuart, FL and Rocky Hill, CT. She was born in Norwich, CT on April 23, 1972, grew up in Cromwell, graduated from Mercy High School in 1990 and went to the University of Scranton, PA and attended the University of Connecticut. She was an invaluable employee at Aetna in Hartford where she worked many years as an Underwriting Consultant in their Group Benefits Division handling large corporate accounts and was repeatedly recognized for her hard work and dedication.
To say Nicole was devoted to her husband, stepchildren, family, friends and, of course, her beloved rag doll cats is a huge understatement. Nicole was well known for her vast group of friends whom she loved fiercely and unapologetically. She was the glue that held countless unrelated people together who then, in turn, became friends themselves. She was the group planner, motivator and event coordinator, always in an effort to make everyone’s experience around her as wonderful as it could possibly be and was the core energy that raised the bar on any experience they had, celebrating everybody and everything. A wanna be matchmaker, Nicole was always on the prowl for a match for her single friends. Her track record, although not terribly successful, was nonetheless a monumental effort. Many hope she keeps trying from above! Her true passion was for everyone in her life to be loved and cared for.
Nicole loved and valued life experiences more than anything, whether it be a weekend trip to Newport, a Red Sox game at Fenway Park, the annual St Patrick’s Day parade, hosting birthday parties for everyone, or group vacations with friends and family. To her life was to be lived to the fullest, never missing a moment.....not tomorrow but now! A three-star life experience was never enough and with a whirl of her time, effort and research, five-stars was the minimum for her tribe! She loved her wine, cheese, music, the sun, the beach and her Audi convertible. Live concerts were her addiction and she attended close to 150 of different genres and generations over her short years.
Nicole’s dedication to her family was legendary. Any family event no matter how far away, from a baby shower to Christmas dinner, was compulsory in her book of life. Every family holiday was to be celebrated with reverence and many days of cooking! “Nikki”, as she was called by her family, lit up a room and you could always tell she arrived by her laughter. Even as an adult, she still didn’t complain when she had to sit at the kids table for large family gatherings.
A culinary goddess, Nicole was happiest when she was cooking and entertaining for those around her. Her love for shopping was only recently eclipsed by her love for cooking. Feeding those close to her was her way of saying “I love you”. Each year her father, at Nicole’s request, would select a more challenging meal for Father’s Day and his birthday and each year he would be met with a plate full of love and a meal of gourmet delight. When asked by her husband on Sundays to make something basic, she would decline his request stating “I’m not making that, I want to COOK” and many hours later we would finally eat her labor of love. Pre-made was not on the menu in HER kitchen.
In the end, Nicole created a vast network of friends and family to whom she was most dedicated and loved dearly. There was always room to bring one more person into the fold. The countless wonderful memories will be forever cherished by anyone who was blessed to have warmed themselves by her light, a light so bright it will be etched in our hearts forever.
Nicole is survived by her husband of far too few years, John T. Acerbi; her stepchildren, who called her “Nee Nee” and to whom she referred to as her “three little kittens”, Colin, Catherine and Will Acerbi; her parents, Paul and Claire Genereux; her in laws, John and Judy Acerbi of Litchfield; her godparents, George and Kathy Surprenant of Norwich; her “sister” cousin, Julia Tucker Wood of Higganum; an unusually large extended family of aunts, uncles and cousins and, of course, her always cherished fur babies, Charlie and Daisy.
Calling hours will be on Friday, August 20th from 4:00 to 7:00 pm at Thurston Rowe Funeral Home, 283 Torrington Rd, Litchfield, CT. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:30 am on Saturday, August 21st at St Anthony of Padua Church on 49 South St, Litchfield, CT. Burial services will be private at a later date. The family requests that masks be worn and that everyone follow proper social distancing guidelines.
Memorial donations may be made to the Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America, 290 Turnpike Road, Suite 5-315, Westborough, MA 01581. 1-800-541-5454. You can visit their website at Myasthenia.org.
Hartford Courant - August 19, 2021