Sapienza

Louis L. Sapienza, 82, of Harmony died Saturday surrounded by his family at the Passavant Retirement Community, Zelienople.

Born May 10, 1928, in Harmony, he was the son of Joseph and Lucy Tutino Sapienza.

Mr. Sapienza was a graduate of Zelienople High School and was a member of the St. Gregory Catholic Church, where he formerly was an usher.

He retired as shop superintendent with Robinson Industries after 41 years, and he also had been a part-time mail carrier for the U.S. Postal Service.

In 1960, Mr. Sapienza founded Sapienza's Service Station in Harmony, and in the mid 1960s, he co-founded with his late brother, Joseph, the Harmony Volunteer Ambulance Service. He was a life member of the Harmony Volunteer Fire Company, where he served 19 years as fire chief and was a life member of the Butler County Fire Chiefs' Association.

Mr. Sapienza was a World War II U.S. Army Air Corps veteran.

In 2004, he received the Distinguished Service Award from the Zelienople-Harmony Area Chamber of Commerce and was named the 2005 Paul Harris Fellow Citizen of the Year by the Zelienople Rotary. He was a avid horse lover, raising Tennessee walking horses.

He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Betty Lou (Trimble) Sapienza, who he married Feb. 26, 1952; three sons, Louis L. (Kathy) Sapienza Jr., Tim M. Sapienza and Mark E. Sapienza, all of Harmony; four daughters, Colette (Tom) Kuli of Cranberry Township, Maria (Richard) Meyer of Harmony, Gina Sapienza and her fiance, Joseph Wehner, of Pittsburgh and Beth Sutton of Evans City; 12 grandchildren, Jason and Anthony Sapienza, Matt and Jenn Kuli, Jesse and Jamie Meyer, Sarah (Troy) Erdlen, Jeremy Wehner and Daniel, Joshua (Meg), Kristen and Autumn Sutton; a great-grandson, Rylan Erdlen; a sister, Gloria Koch of Zelienople; and a sister-in-law, Mary “Betty” Sapienza of Harmony.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his brother, Joseph Sapienza III, and a sister, Rosalie Sapienza.

<B>SAPIENZA<B> — Friends of Louis L. Sapienza, who died Saturday, Nov. 6, 2010, will be received from 2 to 4 and 6 to 9 p.m. Tuesday at the Boylan Funeral Home, 324 E. Grandview Ave., Zelienople. A Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday at the St. Gregory Catholic Church, 2 W. Beaver St., Zelienople, PA 16063. Interment, with military honors, will follow in the St. Gregory Cemetery.In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Harmony Volunteer Fire Co., 543 Main St., Harmony, PA 16037 or to the St. Gregory Catholic Church.Online condolences and directions are available at www.boylanfuneralhome.com.