CLARA M. FAVETTI

CLARA MARTHA FAVETTI (née Enderlein), age 84, passed away peacefully on September 23, 2026, surrounded by the love of her family.

Clara was born on November 20, 1941, in Cleveland, Ohio, to John and Theresa “Baba” Enderlein. The third of five children, she was raised in Cleveland on Bader Avenue, where her father nicknamed her “Cookie.” From an early age she loved books, and she treasured summers spent on her maternal grandmother’s farm in Portage PA. Intelligent, driven, and naturally social, Clara served as president of the social committee at James Ford Rhodes High School. She played the accordion, worked as a lifeguard, loved to sing, and even starred in a high school production, which was the beginning of a lifelong love of music and Broadway musicals.

Clara went on to graduate from Baldwin Wallace University and later attended graduate school at New York University, where she lived near her beloved Aunt Betty and Uncle Broey. She met Marijan “Mike” Favetti while working in the office at Bobby Brooks, and on June 4, 1966, the two were married; beginning a marriage that would span 60 years and carry them far beyond anything either one might have imagined.

Shortly after their wedding, Mike’s work took them to Thailand where they spent seven adventurous years traveling and building a life together. It was there, in Bangkok, that their first son, Mike, was born in 1971. The family later returned to the U.S., and their second son, Mark, was born in Texas in 1973. Over the years that followed, Clara made a home for her family through moves from Texas to Missouri to Ohio. They eventually settled in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, where she helped Mike run a successful hardware store before opening a gift shop of her own. Some of the family’s happiest memories from those years were made at Raystown Lake, camping and boating together each summer.

After their sons left home to attend the U.S. Naval Academy and West Point, Clara and Mike returned to the Cleveland area to be closer to family. She taught English and Literature in both public and Catholic schools, sharing her love of language with generations of students. Clara embraced being surrounded once again by the large extended family she cherished. There were always family “doings,” as she called them, and Clara was happiest in the middle of them. She could often be found cooking up a storm for everyone gathered around her table, or spending hours laughing and telling stories with her sisters.

As her family grew, Clara’s grandchildren became one of the great joys of her life. She spent as much time with them as she could. She loved babysitting, visiting, and passing down family traditions. She especially loved decorating the Christmas tree together and making pierogi for Vilija so her family’s faith and heritage would carry into another generation.

Clara and Mike were active members of St. Clarence Catholic Church in North Olmsted. Clara found a cherished home in the choir there, and it united two of her greatest loves: music and faith. The couple also volunteered together as Red Coats at Playhouse Square in Cleveland, a fitting role for a woman whose love of theater had begun decades earlier on a high school stage. Faith ran quietly but deeply through Clara’s life; for many years she began her mornings at the kitchen table with her Bible and daily devotions, and she often said that Jesus was the best friend she had ever had.

As her health declined in later years, Clara continued to find joy in books, solitaire, and music — and she remained especially close to her sisters, often speaking with them daily. The constants of her life, through every chapter and every move, were always faith and family.

Clara is survived by her devoted husband of 60 years, Marijan “Mike” Favetti; her son Mike and his wife Colleen; her son Mark and his wife Jenifer; her grandchildren Caroline, Michael, Giada, Vincent, and Sean; and her siblings Carol Loede (Russ), Joyce Koblin (Bob), and Eugene Enderlein (Beverly). She was preceded in death by her parents, John and Theresa Enderlein, and her sister Mary Ann Rykena.

Clara will be remembered for her intelligence and determination, her love of music, books, and theater, the traditions she lovingly passed down, the family gatherings she filled with food and laughter, and a faith that sustained and guided her throughout her life.

“Well done, good and faithful servant.” — Matthew 25:23 

Funeral Mass Saturday, September 26, Church of St. Clarence (30106 Lorain Rd.) at 11:00 AM where friends may call 10:00 AM until time of Mass. Interment Holy Cross Cemetery. Although appreciated, the family has requested there to be no flowers.