Jean Licari

Jean was born Giovanna Pumilia, and was called Jenny. In her teenage years, she adopted the name Jean, when joining a local club so that her name could fit on the back of their monogramed jackets. She grew up in Manhattan and worked in the factories as a ‘piecemeal worker’. Jean had many friends and would travel to Ridgewood, Queens to the social club dances. It was at one of these dances that she met her future husband Ted.

Ted and Jean married in 1948 and they had 2 daughters, Barbara Jean and Joan. In their early family life, they resided in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn,

NY. In 1955, they moved to Beacon, NY where Ted worked in his brother’s family business for about 7 years. The family returned to Brooklyn in 1962 and

ultimately, in 1972, moved to Glendale, Queens. Jean resided there for almost 40 years. During this time, she worked for several stores in her neighborhood selling lady’s clothing. She became a great saleslady and her employers loved that she could speak Italian to their customers.

In 1987, she retired to care for her beloved Teddy. However, Ted passed away in 1988 and they never really had an opportunity to retire together. Afterwards, Jean built a life for herself by joining the various senior centers in the Glendale/Ridgewood neighborhood of Queens. Jean had a network of friends at her centers and loved to participate in the dancing. She was a great line dancer and often went 5 days a week to these centers to socialize.

In 2011, her daughters transitioned her to Allen, Texas as her health was failing and she needed assistance. Jean missed her New York home but made the best of her new home in Texas. Jean lived in three different assisted living facilities during the six years she was in Texas. She was always a favorite of the caregivers at each facility. They enjoyed her “New York wit” and sense of humor. She was nicknamed “New York” by several in the Brookdale Assisted Living Facility where she lived for three years. In November, 2016, Jean had to move to another assisted living center, Texas Star to be closer to her daughter and to receive more care. When she left Brookdale, she had a long line of caregivers that came to wish her well and good luck. They truly were going to miss, Miss Jean.

Jean loved to eat and prided herself on being able to “eat anything.” In Texas, she loved to go to Red Lobster and Olive Garden.

Jean was preceded in death by her husband, Ted Licari, her parents, four sisters, Marie Sciarello, Faye Lore, Angelina Pumilia, and Lillian Pumilia, and two brothers, Louis Pumilia and Gus Pumilia.

Jean is survived by her two daughters, Barbara Antao and her husband, Harold and Joan Hetherington and her husband, Glen, five grandchildren, Jennifer Fein and her husband, Michael, Christopher Lukauskas, Francis Antao, Mary Seickel and her husband, Chris, and Daniel Hetherington, four great-grandchildren, Lauren Fein, Ryan Fein, Jonathan Lukauskas, and Jackson Seickel, her sister, Josephine Bellini, and many numerous other family members and friends.

In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting memorials be made in her memory to the Alzheimer's Association www.alz.org or (800) 272-3900.