Marie Louise Cancelli

Born on July 5, 1942, in Worcester, Massachusetts, Marie Cancelli died peacefully on July 31, 2026. The eldest daughter of George and Viola Picard, she was preceded in death by her beloved husband, Steven Cancelli. She leaves her children, David Cancelli, Karen Cancelli, and Lisa Cancelli; her grandson, Andrew Mercier; her siblings, Lois Love, Joan Ford, brother-in-law, George Ford; and her beloved niece, Lauren Eidt Pearson.

Marie graduated from North High School and began her career as a special education teacher’s aide in the Grafton Public Schools and later became the office manager for Kenneth Parker Photography in Holden, MA. Trained as a dressmaker, her skills reached far beyond sewing into countless other textiles, visual and decorative arts. She possessed the uncommon confidence to teach herself whatever captured her imagination, and she almost always mastered it. That same instinct found expression outdoors. Her gardens were not merely planted; they were curated with an artist’s eye and a gardener’s patience. Marie was, above all else, a maker.

Marie especially loved the sea for its rhythm, its horizon, and infinite promise of discovery. Her curiosity carried her to destinations near and far, and she delighted equally in traveling to distant shores and in discovering new places closer to home, believing that every journey offers something worth remembering.

Memorial calling hours will be held on Thursday, August 13, 2026 from 4:00pm to 6:00pm at Mercadante Funeral Home & Chapel, 370 Plantation Street, Worcester. Her memorial mass will be held on Friday, August 14, 2026 at 10:00am at St. John’s Catholic Church, 44 Temple Street, Worcester. Please meet directly at church. Burial of ashes will follow in Notre Dame Cemetery.