Deborah Casey Obituary

Deborah M. Casey passed away on Monday, May 16, 2022, surrounded by her three children following a valiant fight with heart failure. Born to Thomas F. Casey and Claire M. (Blair) Casey on December 4, 1956, Deb was a petite Rhode Island redhead who was raised to be free-spirited, chic, authentic, and witty. After graduating from Cumberland High School in 1974 and earning her bachelor's degree at Rhode Island College in 1978, Deb moved to Phoenix, Arizona to start a life with her former husband, Michael Carboni. In 1982 she received a Master of International Management degree from Thunderbird School of Global Management with concentrations in Managerial Economics and Spanish, and worked in Finance leadership at Honeywell. Deb shifted focus to be a "wicked awesome" mom in 1992, and would later in life share her love for education as a substitute and full-time Spanish teacher who was admired by students and faculty in the Tempe Union High School District.

Deb's curiosity and courage allowed her to view the world as a source of endless marvels, appreciating them as many interconnected pieces of an elaborate puzzle. As a lifelong learner she was fascinated by nature, astronomy, culture, fine arts, architecture, pop culture, and fashion. She loved to sing and had a voice like Bette Midler and Judy Garland. Her world travels brought her to countless historical libraries, churches, landmarks, and museums. She prefered exploration over relaxation, and could navigate the streets of Paris and Florence by memory alone. Her collection of literature expressed her love of biographies, history, science, poetry, and historical fiction, and she would maintain a rotation of eight books at any given time. Her read and lived experiences gave her incredible perspectives that you wanted to hear when you reached out to her for advice, comfort, or to share a laugh. And somewhere along the way she must have also found the manual for being the best mom and best friend all at once, living by the motto: "Be smart. Kind heart. Do your part". Deb is survived by her three children: Cara (Carboni) Dusek, Craig Caboni, Curt Carboni, and her Red Sox-loving Yorkshire Terrier, Fenway.

To honor their mother, Deb's children will help her cross off her bucket list of visiting all 50 states by taking her to the last two states on her list-Alaska and South Carolina-before laying her to rest with her mother, father, and grandparents at St. Ann Cemetery in Cranston, RI. In lieu of flowers, please donate in Deb's memory to Read Better Be Better: https://donate.readbetterbebetter.org/DeborahCasey Read Better Be Better's mission mirrors Deb's: inspire a love of literacy and learning. The organization connects young readers and youth leaders to build a society in which all children master the foundational skills necessary to become independent learners. Your tax deductible donation will provide students access to the program and books.