 | In loving |
Raquel was born in Mount Kisco, NY on March 17, 1981 to the doting care of her parents, Manuela and Fernando Pinheiro. She was a product of Portugal, pre-loaded with a fierce sense of hard work and pragmatism, an endless love for family and her mom’s cooking, and an appreciation for the simple, pure things that make life so fulfilling. She loved everything about the spring and summer, her parent’s pool, the streets of Europe, wine and oysters, and will always have a chair on the dock in Maine. She did not like her husband’s wardrobe, selfish people, anything related to cold, and didn’t much care for COVID.
She leaves behind two amazing children – Sadie and Otis – who she will guard over and whisper advice to for the rest of their lives. She gave them every ounce of her strength, wisdom, and love and fortified them for the journey ahead. She left behind a husband, Cal, who will forever be the messenger to her legacy and will lose a few lbs in her honor. She left behind two parents, who sacrificed so much to give her a life of opportunity and choices and who loved her unconditionally. And she left behind a wake of love and friendship that leaked into the crevices of every school, job, and person she ever touched.
She will be remembered forever as a beautiful soul, who floated effortlessly into a room and brought light to all worthy of it. She will be dearly missed by so many.
Please join us to celebrate the life of Raquel at Rockwood Hall Park (Sleepy Hollow) on Sunday, May 2nd at 12pm. Please dress warm and bring a picnic blanket, food, and your beverage of choice (potentially concealed as I’m not sure the park allows it). See below for directions. Together, we’ll laugh and cry and share stories about the woman who touched us all in such a profound way. Please select kid-appropriate stories, as I want Sadie and Otis to remember this day as the one where they really got to know the beauty their mom brought to the world.
Also, we have been getting a number of requests asking how you can show your love for Raquel. Please don’t feel like you need to do anything. But, if you do want to make a donation, in lieu of flowers, we would encourage a donation to familyreach.org, a nonprofit that aims to support families who face financial barriers to getting cancer treatment.
Directions to Raquel’s Celebration of Life
Rockwood Hall Park (Sleepy Hollow) | Sunday, May 2nd | 12 p.m.
Download Directions as PDF
Address / Parking
Unfortunately, there is no specific address for Rockwood Hall, but you should be able to put it into GPS as Rockwood Hall Park. The parking lot for the park is at the corner of Hospital Access Road and Kendall Way (Sleepy Hollow), behind Phelps Hospital. The parking is lot is very small but people park all up and down Kendall Way and Phelps Way road when the lot is full.
 Rockwood Hall Parking Lot |  Or anywhere along this road |
The Trail
Across the street from the parking lot, you will enter the trail. It only leads left. Near the top of the hill, you will see a fork in the road. Take Foundation Loop to the right. Enter the trail at Foundation Loop and walk about 5 minutes, past the old Rockefeller Foundation (to your left) and up a hill. Right over the lip of the hill is where we’ll be all set up. It is a 9-minute walk from the parking lot (we timed it 😃).
1. Three-way fork in the trail, take the hard right to Foundation Loop. | 2. The old Rockefeller foundation will be to your left. Keep walking. |
3. Walk up this hill. | 4. We’ll set up our picnic blankets in this field. |
The Celebration of Life
There is no agenda for this Celebration. Find a spot on the grass next to friends – bring a blanket, food, wine/water, and whatever else you would ordinarily bring to a picnic. We’ll have a small mic and portable amp set up. And whoever would like to share some words about Raquel will be encouraged to come up and do so in the company of friends. No pressure at all to say anything.
When we’re ready to leave the park, I’ll show you Raquel’s happy place and you’re welcome to share a final private word.