Dolores Rose Panepinto Gaeta, 95, passed away on April 25, 2024, in Bloomfield Township, MI. Dolores was born in Batavia, NY, on December 9, 1928, the daughter of Alfred and Rose LoTempio Panepinto. After graduating from Batavia High School in 1946, she worked in retail sales, as a secretary at Sylvania’s, and as a medical transcriptionist and secretary for the social work department at the Veteran’s Hospital. After moving to Youngstown, OH, in 1968, she managed a woman’s clothing store, and served on the board of the Butler Art Gallery.
Dolores supported the arts wherever she lived, serving on committees of the Youngstown Symphony Guild in the 1970s, and the Naples Philharmonic League in the 1990s, after the Gaetas moved to Naples, FL.
Throughout her life, she supported the business ventures of her husband, Calvin, whom she married in 1948, including the Caravan Restaurant and their commercial real estate company.
Dolores was predeceased by her husband, Calvin, in 2014; by her brother, Alfred, in 1999; and by her son-in-law, Mark Erlich, in 2010. She is survived by two daughters, Pamela Gaeta and Penny Erlich; three grandchildren, Katie Emily Leibhan (Evan), Paul Gaeta Brown (Mackenzie), and Amy Gabrielle Erlich; and three great-grandchildren, Noah Stephen Leibhan, Chloe Rose Leibhan, and Brooke Lillian Brown; several nieces and nephews; and her loving companions and caregivers, the family of LaTonja Cooper, of Michigan.
A mass of Christian burial will be held at St. Joseph’s Church, Batavia, NY, at a later date. There will be no calling hours. Interment will be at St. Joseph’s Cemetery. Funeral arrangements were completed by A. J. Desmond & Sons, Royal Oak, MI. View obituary and share memories at AJDesmond.com
