Jerome "Jay" Vincent Caponigro

Jerome “Jay” Vincent Caponigro died peacefully at home in South Bend, Indiana on Thursday, May 11, 2023 after a year of dancing with pancreatic cancer. Jay was married for 32 years to his beloved wife, Lyn (Hudson) Caponigro. He dearly loved his children: Matthew (Emily Bowe), Maria (Josh) Miller, Mitchell David, Monica, and the late Joseph Antonio. In the last weeks of his life, he became the proud grandfather of Camila Jayne Miller.

Jay was born on March 25th, 1969, in Chicago, Illinois, the eldest child of the late William Caponigro and Rae (Ron Sluiter) Brown-Sluiter. He cherished his sister, Terri (Brian) Sosnowski, and their sons and Jay’s godsons Adam and Scott; his brother, Aaron Caponigro, and his sons Jacob, Nico, and Dmitri and grandson Elijah; his half-siblings David, Catherine, and the late Gary; his godparents Matt and Chris Pesce; and his godchildren Nick Brown and Max Hebbeler Serrano.

Jay graduated from Brother Rice High School in Chicago, and went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in government and international relations from the University of Notre Dame. He fell in love with Lyn during their study abroad semester in Mexico, and they were married in October after graduation.

Jay’s career in community engagement started by organizing with farm workers under the Archdiocese of Las Cruces in New Mexico. He continued this work in Texas with the Industrial Areas Foundation (“IAF”) before returning to Chicago to grow the Southwest Organizing Project (“SWOP”)—based in his childhood neighborhood on the city’s south side—while earning a master’s degree in religious studies at the University of Chicago.

He began his 23-year career at the University of Notre Dame in the Center for Social Concerns. He then served as the founding director of the Robinson Community Learning Center, which ultimately grew into his role as the Senior Director of Community Engagement. He fervently believed in Notre Dame’s responsibility to its local community, leading him to develop programs like Take Ten, Teachers as Scholars, and the Moreau College Initiative, an academic collaboration between Holy Cross College and the University of Notre Dame in partnership with the Indiana Department of Correction. He was honored to serve as a board member of several organizations, including the Finca Del Niño, South Bend’s Center for the Homeless, the South Bend Community School Corporation, the South Bend Mayor’s Commission for Violence Reduction, and the Oaklawn mental health center.

While he received fulfillment from his public work, Jay found great joy in his “private” career coaching soccer, baseball, and hockey, and regenerative peace while working on projects in his garage workshop and his model trains in the basement. Besides his family, he loved: Mountain Dew, Mario’s Italian Lemonade, NPR, 57th Street Books, the Caponigro 4th of July picnic, Brown family reunions, the White Sox, the Blackhawks, the Fightin’ Irish, reading newspapers, playing baseball with the Larks (and the Liners), crafting the annual Caponigro Christmas Card with Lyn, gathering around the family dinner table, making wry comments and witty puns, listening to music (especially Rush, Styx, U2, Billy Joel, and Harry Chapin), guarding the goal in hockey, boating at Birch Lake, camping in the RV, and watching Lord of the Rings. He hated onions.

Jay's life was a testament to his faith in the Gospels and his commitment to the preferential option for the poor. May his death be an invitation for all of us to carry on his spirit in our work. May his memory be a blessing to all he encountered.

Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 18, 2023, at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart on the campus of the University of Notre Dame followed by a community reception.  Friends and colleagues may visit with the family from 4:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday, May 17, 2023, at Palmer Funeral Home - Welsheimer North Chapel, 17033 Cleveland Road, South Bend, where a rosary will be recited at 4:00 p.m. A private burial will be held at Cedar Grove Cemetery.

 Memorial contributions in Jay’s honor may be made to: Robinson Community Learning Center Gift Fund at the University of Notre Dame, Finca Del Niño, or the Moreau College Initiative. 

A livestream may be viewed at https://basilica.nd.edu/sacraments/funerals/funerals-livestream/, this will be available to start viewing 5 minutes prior to the start of the service.

Online condolences may be left for the Caponigro family at www.palmerfuneralhomes.com.

To send flowers to the family, please visit our floral store.