Vanessa Ellen Holland Petrarca shook the hand of metastatic breast cancer and then flipped it on its tail, and kept it guessing for over 8 years. In that time, she was determined to raise her children with love and silliness, be a source of generosity in her community, and eat a lot of cake. She did all of those things and more.

Nessy was a mother who saw her kids for who they are and didn't concern herself with what they "should" do or be. She had a razor sharp wit, an artist's eye, and a genius political intellect. She had a deep love of her family, her Little Free Pantry, her cosmetics, and sugar. She survived the unimaginable loss of her daughter, Lela. She didn't deserve the hands she was dealt, but she sure played to win anyway.

After successfully evading it for over three years, Nessy tested positive for COVID in mid-October and her immune system could not fight it. On Saturday, October 28th, Nessy gave her tired body the slip and went to the other side. She left us all bereft, but so grateful.

Managing metastatic breast cancer is expensive, which makes saving for the future very difficult. Nessy leaves behind her husband, Dave, and her children, David and Izzy, and her brother Sam. Moving on without her is hard to imagine, but she would want her husband and family to have all the support they need, and she would want her kids to have great choices in their future paths.

Please help make Nessy's hopes for her family come true. They will need ongoing support and a financial base to recover from what they've lost.