Michele Caputo
Jul 15, 1957 - Apr 8, 2021On April 8, 2021, Michele Caputo, a vibrant, bright light, left this earth at the age of 63. She was predeceased by her parents Antonio and Irene. Michele was born in New Jersey, and was raised in Stamford, CT. She moved around the country, living in Norwalk and New Haven, CT, Kennebunkport, ME, Greeley, CO, Las Cruses, NM, Lemon Grove, CA, Dunedin, FL and finally settling in Clearwater, FL. Michele was in a car accident that left her a quadriplegic at the age of 24; as a result of her injury, she became very involved in championing for the rights of the disabled. Spending more than half her life in a wheelchair did not diminish her love of traveling. Michele visited Alaska, Greece, Ireland, Japan, Scotland, Spain and spent her 60th birthday snorkeling in St. Thomas. She graduated from Stamford High in 1975, and received a AA in Performing Arts from Grossmont College in 1995, a BA in Applied Arts and Sciences Speech Communication in 1998 and a Masters of Science in Rehabilitation Counseling in 2000 from San Diego State University. Her adventurous spirit was sated by horseback riding, kayaking, parasailing, skiing and sailing. Michele also attended Clown College and became a professional clown, “Rosy”, volunteering her services at many facilities. She was a founding member of the San Diego Chapter of the National Spinal Cord Injury Association. Her love of dance lead her to become involved with the San Diego Dance Theater, which led to dancing with REVolutions Dance and serving on the Board of Directors from 2005 as Treasurer. She is survived by a brother, Anthony, a sister, Carolyn, brother-in-law Louis, and nephews, Vinny and Nicholas. Also survived by Aunts Rose and Mary, Uncle Dick, cousins Butch, Peter, Steven, Jodi, Ricky and Robyn. She also leaves her great friend and roommate, Dwayne and her beloved dog, Tootsie. Michele impacted many people throughout her lifetime and she will be greatly missed.
Please consider donating to REVolutions Dance (revdance. org), a non-profit organization, in memory of Michele. Private services were held to honor Michele.