Raffaela Catania

It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of Raffaela (Luccia) Catania. Beloved wife, mother, nonna and bisnonna. She left us suddenly on Saturday January 10th, 2026 at the age of 89 with loving family members by her side. Left to mourn are her husband of 68 years Antonio, their children:Nazzareno, Giovanni [pre-deceased] (Caroline), Sergio (Doreen [pre-deceased])(Georgina), Roberto (Rosanna), Vittoria (Raffaele); her six grandchildren: Elyshia, Rachel, Nicco, Lorenzo, Siobhan and Juliana; and six great-grandchildren: Tyson, Bella, Olivia, Torin, Tayton and Vivien. Raffaela is survived by her sister Lena and her brothers Filippo and Gerardo, and predeceased by her brothers Giuseppe and Angelo, and her sister Anna.

Raffaela was born on February 18, 1936 to Giovanni and Antonia Ciliberto, in the small port town of Vibo Marina, Calabria, Italy. After a 2 year engagement Raffaela and Antonio were married on March 16, 1956. Happily living together for the first few years they decided to search for a more prosperous life and immigrated to Burnaby, Canada in June 1959 with their first born son. In Canada, the family grew with four more children. She lived her life being a humble, hard-working homemaker and full-time loving, caring mom raising all five children while occasionally working part-time jobs. She invested her years sharing her life with family and friends, enjoying all of her six grand kids and six great-grandchildren as they grew up. Raffaela will be remembered for her loving kindness, and her loss will be profoundly felt by all of her family and friends.

"In lieu of flowers", the family requests donations be made to the Alzheimer Society of British Columbia in memory of our beloved mother.