Narcissa Francesca Ferri

September 30, 1927 - March 10, 2026

Narcissa Francesca Ferri of Westwood, New Jersey, passed away on March 10, 2026. She was 98 years old.

Narcissa (or Narse as she was universally known) was born on the 30th of September 1927 in Cliffside Park, New Jersey, the second daughter of Italian immigrants, Aida and Domenico Ferri. Although a child of the Depression, Narse enjoyed life with her two sisters, two brothers and extended family of cousins, aunts and uncles. Family photos from the time show the siblings laughing and wearing swim suits from a memorable visit to the Palisades Amusement Park, which was just down the road from where they lived. An almost lethal bout of pleurisy in her youth kept her confined to her bed for a long time, instilling in Narse a life-long zest for activity and community engagement.

In a time and in a culture, where women married young and stayed home to raise children, Narse commuted daily from her home in North Bergen to the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company in New York City. She served as an Office Manager there for almost fifty years, enjoying a busy social whirl with her friends from work as she loved all kinds of sports, Italian opera, and music. Vacations abroad to Europe as well as to Hawai’i were annual highlights.

Narse never married but relished her role as the matriarch of quite a numerous clan, delighting in the triumphs as well as the shenanigans of her numerous nieces and nephews. She especially loved sharing in family milestones such as weddings and births, cataloguing with astounding precision all the important dates and spousal connections. Throughout her life, Narse was a devout Catholic; her strong faith permeated her day to day affairs. She dutifully took care of her mother for 32 years. Deeply connected to her Italian roots, Narse served as both the family historian as well as the repository of Neapolitan recipes from the old country. She rigorously enforced what she considered cultural mores and food traditions. “No cheese on clam sauce!” was frequently heard at holiday meals.

Narse was preceded in death by her sister, Nydia and brothers, Henry and Edmund. She is survived by her sister, Diana Pepe of Boca Raton, Florida, 15 nieces and nephews, 41 great nieces and nephews and several great-great descendants. Her eclectic personality, boundless stories and historical knowledge will be sadly missed.