DOROTHY A. RIPOSO MALS’83

Dani Riposo, 79, of Erieville and Cazenovia, died on February 3, 2016 of complications related to ALS.

Dani was born Dorothy Ann Eardley in New York City on December 5, 1936, the daughter of Anna and Rudolph Eardley. She graduated from Little Falls High School and attended Albany State Teachers College. Dani received her BA from Empire State College in Syracuse and a master’s degree in Movement Studies from Wesleyan University.

After her marriage to Tony Riposo Sr., Dani raised her son, Tony, her triplet daughters Karen, Laura, and Tracy, and her daughter Amy. In 1972 she was re-married to Mark “Jim” Sicherman. Dani and Jim, his children, Jonathan, Andrew, Aaron, and Jessica, and her five children moved to a farm in Nelson. It was the family home for forty years.

Dani began her teaching career as a pioneer in dance and expressive movement, aerobic dance, and fitness instruction at Cazenovia College where she taught for 12 years. She soon realized the importance of mind/body fitness, which led her to attain a black belt in Neuromuscular Integrative Action (NIA). She was the Northeast representative to the American Council on Exercise and became a certified Kripalu Yoga instructor. Dani trained many teachers from all over the US in Aerobic Dance, NIA, and Yoga.

The culmination of her career was the planning and building of the Farm Studio for Mind/Body Exercise and Development. This studio on the farm in Nelson incorporated Dani’s life-long love of nature and beauty, which sustained her to the end.

Dani is survived by her husband Jim, all her children, and by her beloved sister Elizabeth Claire of Virginia Beach.

A Memorial Service for Dani will be held 5 p.m. Saturday, February 13, 2016 at May Memorial Unitarian Universalist Society, 3800 East Genesee St, Syracuse, NY 13214.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in Dani’s memory may be made to Hospice of Central New York, 990 Seventh North St., Liverpool, NY 13088 and the Bernie Sanders presidential campaign at berniesanders.com.

To leave a message of sympathy for Dani’s family, please visit www.michaelebrownfuneralservices.com.