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Felicita A. Offredi, 91, beloved wife of the late Albert J. Offredi, passed away peacefully on Jan. 9. She was a resident of Guilford for 64 years and a communicant of St. George Church.

Born Sept. 17, 1929, in Peghera, Bergamo, Italy, she was the second of four children and only daughter of the late Luigi and Elisabetta Arnoldi. She was predeceased by her brother Franco Arnoldi of Varese, Italy, brother Carlo Arnoldi of Guilford, brother Riccardo Arnoldi of Peghera, and daughter Livia O. Jacobs of Guilford.

Felicita was educated at Catholic school in Peghera, and then at the age of 20 she accepted a position with the de Wurstemberger family in Geneva, Switzerland, where she worked as governess for five years. On a holiday return to her home in Italy, she was introduced to a visitor from Guilford who was also a native of Peghera. Felicita married Albert Offredi April 4, 1956, at the Chiesa di San Giacomo Maggiore, and subsequently immigrated to Guilford in early 1957. There, she helped her beloved husband run the family plumbing and heating business until his death in 1982.

In her personal life, Felicita was generous and caring and very devoted to her close circle of family and friends. In addition to being a loving wife and mother, she was an accomplished cuisinier, graciously presenting delicious meals that featured special recipes and a taste of northern Italian culture as well. Felicita was formally trained by the nuns in Italy and became an expert knitter, tailor, and seamstress. She later used those skills to design and create apparel for her family, and to craft interior decor for her family’s home. She was equally at home outdoors, where she spent countless hours carefully cultivating her lawn and treasured flower beds; her extensive vegetable gardens provided fresh produce for her table each season. When someone in the family fell ill, there was no more attentive or adept caregiver than she.

Through the decades Mrs. Offredi loved her occasional return trips to her hometown in Italy, often by ocean liner, and the long summer visits with parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends. One of her proudest achievements was studying for, and then passing, the test to obtain her U.S. citizenship in 1996. In her later years, she enjoyed her ongoing role as a warm and loving sitter to children who, along with their parents, grew to become the most recent members of Felicita’s extended family. Although her health declined as she grew elderly, she bravely shielded her loved ones from sorrow, and she retained her grace, dignity, and humor throughout.

Felicita is survived by her son Joseph Offredi and daughter-in-law Janice of Guilford; son-in-law Allen B. Jacobs and granddaughter Stephanie J. Jacobs, also of Guilford; grandson Michael Albert Jacobs of Manchester, New Hampshire; sisters-in-law Cecilia Arnoldi of Varese, Italy and Carla Arnoldi of Guilford; and nieces, nephews, and cousins both in the U.S. and Italy.

The family is planning a private service later this year. Contributions in the memory of Felicita Offredi may be made to the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, P.O. Box 849168, Boston, MA 02284-9168.

Arrangements are in care of the Guilford Funeral Home, 115 Church Street, Guilford. To share a memory or leave condolences, visit www.guilfordfuneralhome.com.