Lucinda passed away quietly at her home in Olympia, Washington on April 16, 2024. Lucinda was born in Boise, Idaho on January 20, 1960, and grew up in and around the Boise area. Her childhood was spent camping and hiking in Southwest Idaho, where she developed a love of plants, animals, and nature that she retained for life.
Lucinda graduated from Mountain Home High School in 1978 and immediately enrolled in the Links School of Business in Boise. She obtained a paralegal certification and began working in private practice in the Boise area.
A lifetime learner, Cindy received her Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from Boise State University in 1989. After graduation, she combined her legal training and her love of nature as the director of field operations for the Boise office of the Land and Water Fund of the Rockies, where she worked from 1989 – 1994.
In 1994, Lucinda moved to Seattle to attend the Seattle University School of Law. She worked for the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency during the day, and attended law school in the evening, earning her Juris Doctor degree from Seattle University in 1998. Her love of the law blossomed as an attorney in private practice, as a prosecutor and public defender, and as a legislative session attorney for the Washington State Senate Committee Services. This combination of public and private service led Lucinda to a career at the Washington State Department of Financial Institutions, where she worked for 18 years and rose to the position of Director of Consumer Services. Lucinda was passionate about mentoring the people who worked with her, and her collaborative management style enabled her to magnify her contribution to Washington State and its residents.
Cindy was proud of her heritage. To honor her mother, Helen Wolfe Babb, Cindy traced her ancestry back to an 18th-century Pennsylvania farming community. She was accepted as a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution in 2010, in the Thurston County Sacajawea Chapter of that organization. Cindy ran the annual DAR scholarship essay contest for local high school students for many years, which she viewed as another way to mentor the next generation of leaders.
Lucinda loved animals and nature, performing numerous at-home procedures on her dogs and cats. She always joked that if she hadn’t become an attorney, she would have become a veterinarian. On one occasion, Cindy found a puppy that was stricken with canine parvovirus and was near death in a community park. She spent several weeks nursing it back to health and then found the puppy a loving home with a co-worker. She donated time and resources to local animal shelters and animal rescue non-profits of all kinds. Cindy lovingly created a park-like setting at her home that is filled with large shade trees, flowers, shrubs, bird feeders, a seasonal pond for frogs, her dogs and cats, and on most weekends, her friends.
Cindy traveled extensively in North America and Europe, be it hiking in Utah, backpacking in Banff, road-tripping on the Romantic Road in Germany, or a fine hotel in Paris.
Lucinda is survived by her husband Daniel Fazio. They met in law school and were married in March 1998, months before graduation. Lucinda was a passionately dedicated spouse who provided limitless support to her husband. Lucinda is survived by her sister Maureen Kinkela, brother Butler Babb, and niece Christine Babb. She was pre-deceased by her brother Michael Babb.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Daughters of the American Revolution, Sacajawea Chapter at https://www.paypal.com/us/fundraiser/charity/1406363
A celebration of life will be held at a later date.
