Born in Mt. Kisco, NY on June 17, 1958, she was the beloved wife of Peter Gasparich. She is predeceased by her parents Estelle Alice (Scherer) Lawson and Warren G. Lawson. She leaves behind two children, Christine Alice Gasparich (John Hambley) and Eric Daniel Gasparich. She was smitten by her grandson, sixteen-month-old Jack Montgomery Hambley, and devoted to her brother Scott Lawson (Wendy) of Fernandina Beach, FL, and niece, Katy Joyce.
Stephanie is survived by a large and lively extended family, including brother and sister-in-laws Jack and Dianne Singer of Oakmont, PA, Bob and Joanne Pica of Verona, PA, Steve and Deborah Gasparich of Cheswick, PA, and Mark Gasparich (dec.). She adored her nieces, nephews, great-nieces and nephews, and a handful of very special first cousins and their families. Stephanie and her three childhood neighbors formed a sisterhood in their earliest days and became inseparable, lifelong best friends. Her warm heart and magnetic personality drew together a wide circle of dear friends, whom she loved like family. The circle was ever-expanding, even into her last days.
Though not formally trained in music, Stephanie could play all of her favorite songs by ear on the piano. She loved the area where she lived and was cosmically attuned to the natural beauty that surrounded her. Professionally, after graduating from Brewster High School in 1976, she worked as an administrative assistant for BKG Supply Company and later as a personal assistant to philatelist/auctioneer Jeff Purser. She and Peter were married on September 4, 1982, and following the births of her daughter in 1986 and son in 1989, Stephanie spent the next decade as a stay-at-home mom. She found her life’s calling in her work as a teacher’s aide at Hudson Valley United Cerebral Palsy Preschool. In her 23 years at HVUCP, Stephanie’s patience, optimism, silliness, and compassion touched the loves of hundreds of children, families, and colleagues. She adored “her kids’” and celebrated their big developmental milestones and oftentimes hilarious and adorable everyday moments in equal measure.
Stephanie was a doting mother who always answered her phone and remembered sweet details like the anniversary of her daughter’s tonsillectomy and the names of her son’s favorite fly-fishing spots. Her empathy and punny sense of humor made her a joyful, calming presence, constantly. She gave everything of herself to those she loved and greeted strangers with smiles. She was the embodiment of grace, beauty, and strength throughout her life, and most acutely, in her two-year-long battle with stage IV neuroendocrine cancer. In the spirit of her own mother who sustained relentless health challenges throughout her life, she met pain with humor, positivity, and gratitude for her body’s remaining senses and the gifts of being. Those who were lucky to bear witness to this spirit were forever changed by it, giving her family comfort in the persistence of a maternal legacy of love and hope that is nothing short of divine.
A memorial service will be held when it is safe for Stephanie’s family and friends to travel from near and far to be together and honor her beautiful soul. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Hudson Valley United Cerebral Palsy Preschool.
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