Leia, 26, was born in Boston on July 7, 1992. She grew up in Waltham and Sudbury. She attended elementary school at Our Lady Comforter of the Afflicted in Waltham. After moving to Sudbury in 2005, she attended Curtis Middle School and graduated from Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School in 2011. After graduation, Leia attended and graduated from Empire Beauty School in Framingham, where she earned her cosmetology license.
She loved cutting and styling the hair of her friends, family, and clients, and took pride in expressing herself through her own ever changing hairstyles and colors. She loved being a part of her “crazy, big, Italian family,” and was amused at her friends’ reactions when they attended one of the many family events. Leia’s renown kindness and compassion made her beloved by all who knew her. She accepted everyone as she or he was, and proved to be a great listener and a wonderful friend. She responded to her friends whenever they needed her, sometimes to her own detriment. She was extremely generous with her time, money, and possessions. If you needed something, she provided it and seldom asked for it to be returned. She loved all animals, especially cats. With her gentle encouragement, cats deemed “unfriendly” were soon purring on her lap. As a child, she would often attempt to rescue injured or abandoned animals she found around her childhood home. She loved children and the elderly and they loved her. Her favorite hair salon clients were children, the disabled, and the elderly. They took more time and patience, but she loved helping them.
Leia was an extremely intelligent and creative person. She started drawing as soon as she could hold a pencil. Her drawings, paintings, and sculptures, were impressive. She loved mermaids, Hello Kitty, and anime figures, which were often the subjects of her artwork. She had an eye for color and fashion and put together wonderful outfits. She had a wonderful sense of humor, and her laughter erupted from her entire body and enveloped those around her, making them smile, even if they weren’t in on the joke.
Leia will be deeply missed by her parents, Mary-Elizabeth Iosua Lanza and Mark J. Lanza of Sudbury, her sister, Marie A. Lanza of Quincy and brother, Nicholas J. Lanza of Sudbury. She was the granddaughter of June E. Lanza and the late Essio Lanza of Wareham and the late Mary (Riccelli) Iosua and Joseph Iosua of Wakefield. She was the beloved niece of her aunts: Joanne Sylvester of Peabody, Dorothy Iosua Gonzales and her husband Vince of Lynn, Marilyn Iosua of Reading, Janet Iosua of San Francisco, Kathleen Iosua of Beverly, Gina (Lanza) Coates and her husband Greg of Taunton, and Faye Lanza of Taunton, and her uncles: Joseph Iosua of Wakefield, Jeffrey Lanza of Brockton, Philip Lanza and his wife Patty of Wareham and the late David Lanza. Leia was loved by her many cousins: Richard and his wife Jennifer, and their children Anthony, Sara, Dean, and PJ, Jon and his sons Jonny and Dominic, Julie, Kristina and her daughter Ava, Tony and his companion Megan, and his daughters Destiny, Amaria, and Evey, Paul and his companion Amanda and their sons Jacob and Jaxon, David and his companion Cassie and their daughters Liliana and Saphora, Lisa, Sabrina (Lanza) O’Connell and her husband, Caley, and their children, Vanessa, Christina, and Zachary, Eric Lanza, Khristie Wilkins and her husband, Chris and their children, Quentin and Laynee, and Lynn Lanza and her husband, John Camara and their daughter, Leighton. She will also be missed by her many close friends and especially her boyfriend, Nat.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at Our Lady of Fatima Parish, 160 Concord Road, Sudbury, on Thursday, April 4 at 10:30AM. Visitation will be held Wednesday, April 3 from 4-8 PM at the Duckett-J.S. Waterman & Sons Home of Memorial Tribute, 656 Boston Post Road/Route 20, Sudbury. Burial will be private. Memorial Contributions may be made to Buddy Dog Humane Society, Inc., 151 Boston Post Road, Sudbury, MA 01776.
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