Received a sad call from former Chaplain Clint Purvis, who told us Michele LaCivita, the beloved wife of former director of player personnel Bob LaCivita, had passed away after an extended battle with cancer.

As a Golden Girl for the University of Pittsburgh band, Michele loved college football and therefore was very supportive of her husband’s career, which included 11 seasons at Florida State. LaCivita ran administrative duties related to football recruiting and the day-to-day administration of the football office. During his tenure (2007-17), the Seminoles signed nine consecutive top-10 ranked classes including two No. 1-ranked classes and four top-5 classes.

LaCivita served in a similar role at NC State and the University of Florida as well as with Terry Bowden at Auburn.

Purvis raved about the love in the LaCivita family, which included their son, Bryan, who was a receiver on the FSU football team.

“Michelle, Bryan and I Ioved our time at Florida State,” said LaCivita. “We met a lot of great people and have made friends who we consider 'family.' Our heartfelt thanks go out not only to our dear friends but also to our entire Florida State Family!”

In her obituary, her family wrote this about Michelle: “Michelle was the bravest person we knew. She fought cancer valiantly for 16 years to be with all of us till the very end. Now she is with the Lord and her eternal family.”

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society --https://www.lls.org/ways-to-give or PO Box 98018, Washington, DC 20090-8018.