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Rachel Marie D'Avino
July 17, 1983 ~ December 14, 2012
Rachel's bell is C3. When C3 rings, we remember a truly remarkable, loving, caring, heroic teacher who gave her life freely and selflessly so that other lives might be saved. She possessed a smile that could light up a room the moment she entered.
Rachel had many interests beyond work. She loved animals, cooking, photography and karate. She was the oldest of three children, and she cherished her younger sisters, treating them as if they were her own children. When it came to work, she was passionate about her role as a behavioral therapist working primarily with autistic children. Rachel wanted to change the world and make it better for those with autism.
Rachel was always willing to go the extra mile for her students. She included these children in her daily life as if they were all members of her own family. She hosted holiday events and crafting parties for them, in some cases in her own home. In every imaginable way, she tried to do whatever she could to help them find their own way in a challenging world.
As her sister Sarah began to deliver the eulogy, the sun emerged from behind the clouds, and Sarah spoke the following words from the depths of her own heart:
“Everything she did had an air of confidence, but never arrogance,” said D’Avino.
“That was Rachel – a hard worker, a risk taker, a winner. She excelled at everything she did, such as her incredible patience and ability to work with those with special needs, adults and children alike.
“She was so important to so many people. She drove to work with a smile. We might think, if given the chance, Rachel might have gone on to do great things. She had already done great things … working with autism awareness, her job working with clients with developmental disabilities, and her labor of love as a daughter, a sister and a friend. Our home’s foundation has been rocked to the core from this enormous loss.”
Rachel was buried wearing the engagement ring she was supposed to get for Christmas, her grieving sister revealed.
Rachel D’Avino’s boyfriend got permission to propose from her parents and was planning to pop the question on Christmas Eve, but Tony Cerritelli’s romantic dreams were shattered.
Rachel’s younger sister, Sarah, said the ring was an heirloom that had been in the D’Avino family for generations.
“It was our Italian grandmother’s. Being the oldest it was supposed to be hers,” Sarah said. “Tony swiped it, had it cleaned up and replaced the diamonds.
“She’s wearing it now.”
Rachel will never be forgotten. A bell for Rachel will always ring at Christmas.