Suellen Therese Sciarappa Cirelli

She is survived by her children: Melanie Mena of Miami Springs, Florida; Bridget Kyriacou of St. Louis, Missouri; and Vanessa Pierce of Orlando, Florida; her loving brother: Dr. Leo V. Sciarappa of West Haven, Connecticut; her eight grandchildren: Mary, Ryan, Megan, Andrew, Edsel, Zachary, Jackson, and Leonardo; nephews: Jason Sciarappa, John Avilla, and Joseph Avilla; and nieces: Johanna Breer and Terri Pisseri.

Suellen was pre-deceased by parents Vincent Sciarappa, Mary (Canavan) (Sciarappa) Murphy, and brother James Sciarappa.

Suellen graduated from Cardinal Spellman High School, Bridgewater State College (Theater), Massasoit Community College of Nursing (RN), Florida Southern College (BSN), and University of Florida (Master’s Degree Nursing). She was a certified ARNP and ACRN in HIV/AIDS Care. She was a Primary Care & HIV provider/educator at the Polk Dept. of Health Bartow PCC and the HUG ME Program with the Orlando Regional Healthcare System. She served as Adjunct Instructor for both Florida Southern College and Valencia Enterprises and faculty member of the Florida Caribbean AIDS Education Center. She had numerous articles published in both local and national medical journals and appeared as a speaker at several national HIV/AIDS conferences. She was active in community service, a member of many professional organizations which supported HIV/AIDS health services and education, and recipient of the 2001 - 2003 ANAC Anemia Scholarship Award.

In her spare time, she enjoyed her dogs, reading, crafting, gardening, and watching musicals. Her beautiful operatic voice could be heard to the last church pew. Her humor was next to none which was a blessing to all. She walked to the beat of her own drum, was a free spirit, and had accessories for every holiday, event, and whimsy. Sue was as big as life and intensely private at the same time.

This tremendous loss is felt deeply by her entire family, dear friends, and the community served. She will be missed dearly. There will be a celebration of life at a future date.

If Suellen was here today, she would give the following quote from her favorite movie, “Auntie Mame”: “Yes! Live! Life’s a banquet and most poor suckers are starving to death!”

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the One Pulse Foundation (www.onepulsefoundation.org) or Orlando Health Foundation (www.orlandohealthfoundation.org).