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3.20.2003
Rachael Florio-DePietro, 31; a caring nature, loved the outdoors
Rachael Florio-DePietro arrived at family parties smiling and offering
"hellos" all around. She took care to say "love you"
to everyone before she left.
For family members who still talk about her in the present tense, it
was Rachael's caring, kindhearted spirit that drew people in from the
moment they met her.
"You couldn't meet her and not like her," said her father,
George Florio. "She loved being around people. She always took an
interest."
Rachael, 31, of Coventry, loved nature, too, and she dreamed of planting
a big garden. She enjoyed walking in the woods with her friends and family.
Most of all, she loved little animals.
In one of the oldest family photos, a very young Rachael totters through
a petting-zoo pen with docile goats and geese. Rabbits almost as big as
Rachael lounge nearby. The image is old and blurry, but the picture is
clear: Rachael is wandering around to each creature, saying "hello."
Her Aunt Betty remembers one time Rachael saw a wounded animal hobbling
across the road as she drove home. It was an opossum, maybe, or a raccoon.
Whatever it was, Rachael worried it would get smashed by another car.
She pulled over and stepped into the street, guarding the animal until
it lurched off into the bushes.
That caring instinct matured, her father said, when Rachael gave birth
to her son Adrian, now 7. Adrian lives with Rachael's ex-husband, Dean
DePietro.
"She was a devoted mom," Florio said. "She'd do anything
for Adrian."
Rachael shared her love of animals -- and of people -- with her brother,
Adam Florio, 26.
The two had always been close, hanging out, teasing each other, quoting
lines from favorite movies and television shows like Seinfeld, and then
acting out goofy scenes together.
Adam was with her at The Station that night. When fire tore through the
club, he lost sight of his sister in the smoke and press of panicked people.
He managed to escape through a window; relatives saw him on TV, cooling
burns on his head with handfuls of snow. Rachael never made it out.
Adam was hospitalized for a week with serious burns and seared lungs.
His family postponed Rachael's funeral at his request, until he was well
enough to be there.
-- Neil Shea
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