Anita Manno

Anita Manno (nee Faillace), 90, passed away on July 2, 2021 at home with her family by her side.

Anita was born in Clifton at her grandmother’s two-family house in 1931. During the depression years, her family moved around trying to make a living. Once, they moved to Nyack, NY to open a chicken market. After that business failed, they moved back to Clifton. At one point during the Depression the family had to split up and live with relatives. The family continued moving between Clifton and Passaic until eventually, the parents bought their family home in Clifton where they could settle down. Anita and her sister Gladys were responsible for watching over three very rambunctious brothers, Ronald, Robert and Angelo, while their parents were working.

Anita met her future husband, Tony Manno, at a candy store near their homes in Clifton. Tony was a very generous and helpful person which won Anita’s heart. After getting married, they moved to various places in Clifton where they started their family. Eventually, they bought a home in what seemed to be, at that time, a town far away and “in the country”, Wayne. They had their fourth child soon after moving to Wayne.

Anita was a very devoted Catholic. Coincidentally, they moved to the same area where a new church, Our Lady of the Valley, was created, but not yet built.   Anita and Tony enjoyed volunteering their time and energy in supporting the growth of the new parish.  Their favorite priest, Fr. Rugel, was now pastor of the new church. They helped build it up to become a full-fledged church then helped it grow. At that church, she was a member of the choir and a Eucharistic minister. Anita and Tony joined Marriage Encounter and the charismatic movement in the 70s. She made lifelong friends from these organizations.

According to her children, Diane, John, Theresa, and Anthony, Anita was the best mother you could have. She was a stay-at-home mother until Diane became a teenager. Then she had jobs as an administrative assistant and a salesclerk at Bamberger’s. Diane remembers getting many clothes from Bamberger’s as a result. Anthony remembers that his mother would still be available when he came home after school.

Anita always supported her children in whatever they did, even if it might have conflicted with her religious beliefs due to the circumstances they were in.  Family was everything. She would help with advice, money, teaching the art of Italian cooking, the virtue of patience and many other things. She was always there for her children.

Since all her children were becoming adults in the late 70s, she decided to broaden her horizons by taking courses at the local college, William Paterson. Tony also encouraged her to further her education even though it was not a popular concept for a housewife to pursue these goals at the time. Anthony would go to New Jersey Institute of Technology for Computer Science and Anita studied Psychology. Anita would help Anthony with essays and Anthony would help Anita with statistics. When Anthony left the house, he bought Anita a Commodore 64 which made her more advanced in computers than other people her age when she was older. They graduated at the same time in 1984. She continued to use her computer for keeping track of the family’s finances, investments, recipes, cards for special occasions and creating a family genealogical tree.

Anita then went on to go to Rutgers in New Brunswick for a master’s degree. That was a huge move for her since it was so far away and she had to go on busy highways (something she feared), but Tony kept encouraging her to go for her dreams. She overcame any obstacles and earned her Master’s in Social Work (MSW). She was an excellent student who graduated Magna Cum Laude.  She was a role model for her family. She worked as a counselor at a family service agency then opened her own marriage and family counseling practice. At first, she shared an office with another business, later Tony added an addition to the house to create an office for her to use. Anita was also a counselor at Our Lady of the Valley. She helped many patients as a result. Her daughters saw Anita as a role model for a strong woman who was a supporter of women’s rights. Anthony remembers her frequently discussing how women should be able to advance further in the Catholic Church into new roles. Anita always saw the bright side of a situation.  Her love of knowledge brought her joy and many exciting and fulfilling years.

Anita had many hobbies and interests. She was a passionate gardener which was on full display in her Wayne and Rockaway gardens. Whenever you wanted to brighten her mood, just get her flowers. She was a truly great Italian cook. Anita threw many wonderful and memorable parties for family and friends. She enjoyed photography and later in life she experimented with watercolor painting. Another passion was traveling where she and Tony traveled many times throughout the United States, Europe and on cruise ships.

Eventually, she decided it was time to relax from working on the house in Wayne and move to an adult community in Rockaway.  It was there that she enjoyed swimming, water aerobics, ceramic classes, educational seminars, raising finches and parakeets, and her companion Maltipoo dog.  She cared for Tony when he was afflicted with a long-term illness until he passed away peacefully in 2012. They were married for 62 years. She never took her wedding band off. The last three years, Anita has been living in an assisted living facility in Morris County where she did not have to maintain her condo and she could enjoy more time of leisure with minimal responsibilities.  Her favorite activities at the assisted living facility were bingo, socializing at happy hour, craft activities and many holiday parties.  She continued to be a strong woman until the end. The staff at the assisted living community commented that they loved her sense of humor and infectious laugh and that she will be missed.

Anita is survived by four loving children, four siblings, six grandchildren, and seven great grandchildren. She will be greatly missed by them all. We hope she is reunited with the love of her life, her husband Tony.  

In lieu of flowers, donations to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memorial Processing, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105-9959, www.stjude.org, would be greatly appreciated.