Angela “Lil” Orlowski, a 51-year resident of Newtown, passed away peacefully on November 27 at a daughter’s home in Arizona. Two months earlier, a diagnosis of advanced pancreatic cancer shocked all who knew this vibrant woman. She was nearly 90 years old.

“Lilly” was born in February 1931. Only three months before, her newlywed parents had moved from Italy to New York City after learning of Mussolini’s plans to invade Ethiopia. Her father took advantage of his previously attained American citizenship to avoid the draft, and intended a temporary stay in America, but the births of two siblings and World War II derailed her parents’ return to Italy. Her father prospered delivering blocks of ice to home ice-boxes. As a young school girl, Lilly assisted with his business ledgers.

By 1945, Lilly’s family moved into a large duplex they had purchased in Westchester County where her father co-owned a poultry market. Upon Lilly’s graduation from New Rochelle High School in 1948, her family embarked on their long-delayed return to their homeland. However, after six months in post-war Italy, her parents decided America promised a better future, and they returned to New Rochelle.

Lilly worked for Bell Telephone in The Bronx. But after graduating from the Latin American Institute, she became a bilingual secretary/translator in Manhattan. When a Cuban friend introduced her to a handsome Polish-American, Lilly returned home that night and informed her sister she had just met the man she was going to marry (even though they were both dating other people at the time).

Lilly wed Eugene “Gene” Orlowski in October, 1955. Gene called her “Lil” — a name that stuck. Gene’s engineering career required moves to Illinois, New York, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania. Within ten years the couple had four daughters, each born in a different location. In 1968, the family moved to Newtown. Over the next half-century, Lil enjoyed enduring friendships as a member of the Dodgingtown Homemakers Group and made Newtown her home.

In addition to raising her daughters, Lil worked at various nearby jobs. Her interest in antiques landed her a job at a Bethel antique shop. Her friendliness and sales ability made her a good fit for Community Ambassador, a local welcoming service. And her fascination with the powers of the human mind led her to employment at the Enrichment Foundation.

In 1975, Lil enrolled in an Adult Ed quilting class. When a new teacher was needed the next semester, Lil was asked to fill in. A former teacher encouraged her to accept, advising, “A teacher only has to be one step ahead of the students.” Teaching quilting became Lil’s passion, and she expanded her teaching venues (although it took years before she actually completed a quilt!). In 1983, she was hired to teach at the Southbury Senior Center and it became her favorite class. She returned each week for the next 35 years, continuously learning new skills, and eventually mastering the craft.

In 1985, Lil took another job at Chintz-N-Prints in Newtown. She worked there for the next 33 years — filling her closets with fabrics she couldn’t resist purchasing for quilting projects. When she and Gene welcomed their first grandson, Max, in 1988, Lil happily stitched together baby quilts for him and the two other grandsons and two granddaughters that followed.

Lil and Gene enjoyed good health and vitality well into their senior years. They often traveled with friends, exploring various countries in South America, Asia, and Europe. Travel provided Lil with new opportunities to reunite with her Italian family in Bari, Italy.

When Gene unexpectedly passed away in 2017, Lil decided to leave her longtime home in Newtown. In 2019, at age 88, she moved to Cooperstown, N.Y., to live closer to family. Eager for a fresh start, Lil dove into her new life. She joined the Leatherstocking Quilters Guild and a nascent Cooperstown Senior Center that sparked a newfound talent for painting. She volunteered to usher at the Glimmerglass Opera and forged new friendships with the Red Hat Ladies and Lunch Bunch. When COVID halted these activities, she enjoyed hikes and exploring surrounding communities with her daughter, Phyllis.

Lil will be remembered for her vivacious personality, generosity, and boundless creativity. No one remained a stranger in her presence. She was a wonderful cook and a fabulous hostess. Above all, she valued family, friends, good health, good food, and good company. She will be greatly missed.

Lil is survived by her daughters Caroline, Eugenia “Gigi” (Bruce), Phyllis (Tom), and Andria; grandchildren Max, Julian (Campbell), Desi, Kiya, and Kassandra; siblings Marcella and Nicholas (Margaret); nieces Amy (Joe), Amanda (Matt), and Melissa; Jimmy and Barbara; Yasmin, Dominick, Michelle, her Southbury Senior Center, and Chintz-N-Prints family; dearest friends Ralph (Tacie), Dawn, and Luella; as well as nieces, cousins, and second cousins in both the United States and Italy.

Lil was predeceased by her husband, Eugene, and parents, Phillip and Angela.

A Memorial Mass/Celebration of Life will take place at St Rose of Lima Church in Newtown at 11 am, June 26, 2021.

To honor Lil’s Italian heritage and love of opera, donations can be made to Glimmerglass Opera, Development Department, Cooperstown NY 13326.