Anneliese J Fazzi

1924 - 2024

Anneliese Johanna Marold Fazzi, born on February 24, 1924, passed away peacefully in her own home surrounded by loved ones on December 15, 2024, in Apple Valley, California, at the age of 100. Her remarkable century of life was marked by love, family, and enduring strength.

Anneliese was born to Charlotte and Gustaf A. Marold in Berlin, Germany. During WW2 she was working in an office where she met Frank J. Fazzi, an American Air Force soldier. They married in October 1946. The Fazzi family lived in Germany, then returned to the U.S. and lived in Texas, Illinois, Mississippi, then back to Germany for 4 years, Virginia, California, and after 32 years in the service they retired in Hampton, Virginia.

Anneliese loved music and wanted to be an opera singer when she was young. She told stories of walking in the woods as a child with her father, who would whistle and sing with her on their walks. At the end of the war, her father was a POW in Russia for 3 years, and he was never the same. Her mother, who the family called Oma, remained in Berlin until her husband’s death in 1956, and then returned to her hometown of Schweinfurt. In 1977, Frank and Anneliese brought her to live out her life in Hampton. Frank passed away in April 1983 at the age of 65, and Oma lived to be 99 and died in 1991.

Anneliese was the choir director of the Catholic church on Langley AFB for many years. She also sang with the Peninsula Choral Society. She was an expert baker and excellent cook. When Frank took Anneliese out to dinner, no matter what they ate, he always said her cooking was better than any restaurant. Anneliese was a wonderful mother and strived to be an efficiency expert by making the household chores a challenge to herself to see how much faster or better she could do things every day. She sewed for herself and her children, and taught her daughters how to cook, bake, sew, and keep house.

Anneliese cared for Oma in Hampton and eventually her children moved away to pursue their careers. In 1992, Charlotte and Todd Jess welcomed Anneliese to her new place in Apple Valley, CA so she could be near family. Anneliese was happy to be in her home in her last moments, and she said she saw her husband Frank just before she passed away.

Anneliese is survived by her six children: Louis G. Fazzi; Charlotte J. Jess (Stoddard Jess, Jr.); Michael F. Fazzi (Bonny); Annette C. Dolan (Joseph Dolan); Joseph A. Fazzi (Laura); and Elizabeth M. Fazzi Smith (Jack). She also leaves behind a legacy of love through her grandchildren: Andrea Petritz, Jennifer Sutton, Kerrie Denmark, Julia Fazzi Haney, Michael Dolan, Karrie Dolan, Adriana Fazzi, Miranda Fazzi, Carson M. Smith, Dylan J. Smith, and Ethan L. Smith; as well as her great-grandchildren: five Denmarks, two Petritzes, four Haneys, three Suttons, and three Dolans; and seven great-great-grandchildren from the Denmark family.

A burial service to honor Anneliese’s life will be held on January 10 at 2 p.m. at Hampton Memorial Gardens in Hampton, Virginia.

Anneliese’s memory will live on in the hearts of her family and all who knew her. May her long and meaningful life serve as a source of comfort and inspiration to those she leaves behind.