Lucia Ayako Faleski Obituary (1955 - 2018)

Lucia Ayako Sueta Faleski, passed from this life peacefully at her home on August 2, 2018, after living with metastatic breast cancer for over eight years. She was 62 years old. Lucia was born on September 9, 1955 in the small town of Mirandopolis, Brazil, where her family lived for years before moving to Sao Paulo, Brazil where she graduated from university at Pontificia Universidade Catolica de Sao Paulo. She went on to work as a systems engineer for a major corporation. It was there that Lucia met her future husband, Randolph (Randy) Faleski. In December of 1981, Lucia immigrated to the United States and she and Randy married shortly after. Together, they have one daughter, Cecilia, who, from birth, was Lucia's sidekick and best friend. After a successful career in the health insurance field, Lucia spent the last 19 years as owner and operator, along with her family, of Union Tae Kwon Do in South Riding, VA. Though she was not able to be at the school for many years due to her treatments, her heart was always with the children and she spoke very fondly, with love for the children and families - especially from the after-school program. In 2015, Lucia achieved a years-long goal of becoming a United States citizen, passing her citizenship tests and interviews less than one year after completing whole brain radiation. Finally and most recently, Lucia fulfilled another dream and traveled back to Brazil in April of this year; spending an unforgettable time with her loving family. Left to honor Lucia's love, sense of humor, and happy memories are her husband, Randy Faleski; daughter and son-in-law Cecilia Sadako Faleski and Nicholas Powers Lewicki, her granddaughter, the true joy of her life, Aria Ayako Sueta Lewicki; sister and brother-in-law Alzira Atsuko Sueta Ideriha and Roberto Kunio Ideriha; niece and great-niece, Fernanda Cristina Ideriha and Maria Clara Ideriha Faria; father of Maria Clara, Luciano Mike Faria; sister Carmem Tissako Sueta; sister Elisabeth Marico Sueta; nephew Cesar Hiromi Sueta (Eliana Fagundes Sueta) and great-niece Gabriela Ayri Fagundes Sueta; nephew Wagner Yassuo Sueta (Wanessa Lupianez Sueta) and great-niece Alice Mieko Lupianez Sueta; niece Leticia Mayumi Sueta; and many more uncles, aunts, cousins, family in-law, and friends who, despite the distance and time apart, Lucia always held in her heart. She is also survived by some of her best friends, her dogs and granddogs, Lucy, Yoshi, Bella, and Bart. Already departed from this life are Lucia's parents, Mamoru Sueta and Sakamoto Sueta; her brother, Walter Yasushi Sueta; her cousin Mauro Sergio Shuiti Sakamoto; her Grandparents, several uncles and aunts, cousins, friends, and her dog and granddog Ethel and Sammie. Lucia's family would like to extend a special thank you to the staff at Virginia Cancer Specialists, especially the infusion clinic nurses and her oncologist Dr. Anne Favret, for the heartfelt care they provided. They would also like to thank Dr. Stella Hetelekidis, her radiation oncologist, Dr. Reza Mirali, her plastic surgeon, Dr. John McAllister, her ophthalmologist, and Dr. Niraja Thathagari, her primary care doctor, for being kind and comforting sources of care throughout her journey. Finally, the family would like to thank Lucia's care team at Capital Caring for their compassionate care over the last month, especially Trinh, Peace, and Julie. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you please consider making a donation to one of the following organizations in Lucia's name. Capital Caring at www.capitalcaring.org Metastatic Breast Cancer Network at www.mbcn.org The Humane Society of the United States at www.humansociety.org