Phyllis “Pan” Libman Ruzzi, 86, passed away peacefully on January 12, at Granite Ledges in Concord, NH, surrounded by loved ones.
Pan was born in Staten Island, New York, daughter of the late Earl and Phyllis (Moffat) Libman. A graduate of Catskill High School and Middlebury College (Vermont), Pan traveled to Israel as part of a teaching exchange program, and it was there that she met her first husband, Menashe Sofer, and had her first child. She later married Gordon Usticke after being widowed and together they had four children.
Pan ultimately reunited with her former high school sweetheart (CHS class of ‘53), Francis “Pep” Ruzzi. Pan and Pep married and made a home together at Sleepy Hollow Lake, Athens, NY, where they hosted legendary July 4th parties for 25 years.
Pan taught elementary school in Vermont, Michigan, Long Island, and upstate New York before staying at home to raise her five children. During this time, Pan was the NYS area coordinator for Le Leche League, and she spent many years educating and supporting mothers in breastfeeding and natural parenting methods. She and her then-husband Gordon were advocates for family-centered birth, teaching classes and championing father’s rights in the delivery room, leading to new policies at the local hospital in Kingston, NY. Pan was the birth attendant at many home births and her youngest was born at home during a time when that was unconventional.
Pan returned to work as the elementary school counselor at Greenville Elementary School and later returned to the classroom to teach her favorite grade (5th) until she retired in 2000. Pan found immense joy working with children and considered it to be her life’s purpose.
After retirement, Pan and Pep spent a decade traveling the world with a group of fellow explorers who dubbed themselves “The Sweet Travelers.” Pan was an avid reader and active participant in book clubs that met monthly in Greenville. She was enriched by live theater, music, and movies; enjoyed supporting artisans and craftspeople; was a devotee of the New York Times crossword puzzle; and was generally eager to participate in any adventure that involved good conversation and good food.
In high school, Pan was voted “Longest Remembered” and indeed she has been. Pan could not stand in line anywhere without making a friend and sharing their “life stories.” She found perhaps her greatest joy in the special relationships she shared with her grandchildren: annual beach trips to Cape Cod, Christmas-cookie decorating, swimming at the lake, belting the “Fiddler on the Roof” soundtrack, dressing up in Grandma’s scarves and jewelry, playing and being silly.
Pan is survived by her husband of 33 years, Francis “Pep” Ruzzi; her daughter Erica Bodwell (Andy Gray) of Concord, NH; her son John Usticke (Heather Ciampa) of Athens, NY; her son Alec Usticke (Jill) of Peekskill, NY; her daughter Caitlyn Usticke (Dennis Sherman) of East Montpelier, VT; her daughter Roxanna Usticke of Concord, NH; 13 grandchildren; several great-grandchildren; her sister, Bo Keppel, of Santa Fe, NM, and her three children; cousin Bob Rogers of Brooklyn Heights, NY; and Pep’s family.
Pan’s life will be celebrated this summer when family and friends gather at Sleepy Hollow Lake for a July 4th party in honor of Pan (on 7/9/22). Please consider making a donation in Pan’s name to one of several organizations she supported throughout her life: Planned Parenthood, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the Southern Poverty Law Center, Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), or the Greene County Historical Society.