It is with heavy hearts, but lives enriched by her grace, that we share the passing of our matriarch, Nonna Maria Laureti.

She was 94 years old. She would have turned 95 on Wednesday 18 March - the same day her family gathered to say farewell. We find something quietly beautiful in that. A life that full deserves that kind of send-off.

Maria was the heart of the Laureti family. Wife to Alessandro, mother to Frank, Serge, and Letty, grandmother to 10, great-grandmother to 11 - with two more little ones on the way who will grow up hearing her name and tasting her recipes. She was the quiet force behind everything Saddler's Creek has always stood for.