Read the NYT obituary for Mafalda Caliri

Read the obituary for Al Vessella

Erica Laros is an attorney and writer of obituaries and memoirs: Her writing has appeared in the New York Times. Erica began writing intimate, “slice of life” pieces after losing a close friend in 2007. Upon reading the obituaries in the newspaper, others in the community asked her to pen the stories of their living relatives. She then began writing "living obituaries."

In 2018, the obituary Erica wrote for her great-grandmother, Mafalda, was published as part of the New York Times’ “Overlooked” Project, which began that same year to honor the memory of traditionally underrepresented women.

Erica wants to change the conversation surrounding death to open communication, understanding, and acceptance, using memory and writing to find life's meaning in death.