Obituary of Alicia I. Pagano

Alicia Ione Pagano, educator, poet and artist was the daughter of Neil Gadsby Leonard and Norma (Carr Leonard) Collins. She was born in Sidney, New York in 1929, and grew up in Unadilla, New York. When she retired she returned to her mother's family upstate home in Sidney Center, NY. Alicia loved her children and grandchildren and always looked forward to their visits. She is known for her optimism, her ability to bring people together and her poems about the gifts of nature. She traveled widely in Europe, Africa, Central America, the Middle East and Thailand, but often said that the hills and valleys surrounding her Upstate home are the most beautiful in the world. Alicia married Tom McNutt in 1954 and they had two children, Janice and Daniel. They divorced and she married LeRoy Pagano in 1961. He had two children from a previous marriage, Pier Pagano and Jack Pagano. Together, they brought up their four children. After graduating with a doctorate in Education Administration from The American University, Washington, DC, in 1972, Alicia followed a career of both formal and non-formal education. She taught in several New York City colleges, including Medgar Evers College and was Professor of Elementary Teacher Education at New Jersey City University for 15 years until she retired at age 75. Her non-formal education work included National Director of Program, Girl Scouts of the USA, where she directed the development of the Girl Scout Daisy Program. During her retirement years, she was active in her community, continued writing and painting and produced a calendar of her art and poetry each year. Alicia Pagano is survived by her daughter and son Janice Cragnolin and Daniel Pagano; grandchildren Cody Cragnolin, Amanda Pagano, and Zoro Gold; her half-brother Stanley Leonard, and two step-brothers Moby Collins and Robert Collins. Alicia's family invites you to privately celebrate her memory in your own personal rituals and ways knowing that she is with us all in spirit. You may copy and paste the addresses for the following, or click on the embedded tribute links. Online Memorial Service and Ritual for Alicia Ione Pagano June 29, 2024 - 12:00 PM, in Eastern Time (US and Canada) https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUlc-yqrTwrG9dqB6RCndHDDMr2ZJ87Spt5#/registration Feel free to post your memories on Alicia's memorial web page at: https://www.kudoboard.com/boards/Z53R6N1C/alicia-ione-pagano-memorial In person celebration: Sunday, June 30th, 4pm to 7pm Origins Cafe at Carefree Gardens 558 Beaver Meadow Rd, Cooperstown NY RSVP amandakpagano@gmail.com You may choose to make a donation in Alicia's name to: Visible Ink™, One-on-One Writing Program for MSK Patients. Memorial Sloan Kettering. https://giving.mskcc.org/visible-ink