Office Hours: Monday – Friday, 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Calls outside of office hours? No worries! Our team will respond within 10–15 minutes.
December 17, 2014
Services
Friends may visit with the family at the Vander May Wayne Colonial Funeral Home, 567 Ratzer Road, Wayne, on Sunday, December 21, 2014 from 2-6 PM.
Funeral Services will be held on Monday, December 22, 2014 at 10:30 AM from the funeral home. Entombment will follow at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery and Mausoleum, Totowa.
Connie “Dolly” Mele, age 90, of Wayne, died peacefully on Wednesday, December 17, 2014.
Connie was born in Paterson, the youngest of nine children. She was such a cute little kid, when the milkman stopped by her parent’s house he told Connie’s mom that Connie looked just like a doll. Almost from that day on, Connie was called Dolly.
Paterson was Dolly’s home for all of her childhood and much of her adult life. It was also the home of a nice young boy who lived across the street from Dolly’s family. His name was Anthony and the two of them grew up, eventually falling in love. The saying usually goes, “I married the girl next door.” Well Dolly’s husband Anthony was one of the few guys who could say “I married the girl across the street.” That wedding took place on Sunday, November 3, 1946 at the old Blessed Sacrament Church on 16th Street in Paterson.
They were blessed with their little girl Linda, and Dolly owned the place where all the local woman came to catch up on the neighborhood gossip…..Doll’s Beauty Salon. She started the business on Madison Ave. and three years later she moved it to 18th Street where she made many-a ladies hair look beautiful. The newlyweds continued their lives in Paterson until 1968 when they moved to Wayne. Dolly eventually retired after a total of forty-three years in the business. Tony retired too and the two of them moved to Florida in 1980.
Dolly was a bundle of energy and lots of fun. She was involved in all kinds of activities, especially when living in Florida. You could always find her at Bingo night and she loved to gamble – especially on those slot machines. Since there was no place to gamble in Florida, she would just jump over the state line into Biloxi, Mississippi where they had casinos. She even hit the jackpot once. Dolly also enjoyed playing golf, bowling, playing cards and she was really into crafting. Her family has fond memories of some of her creations like her tissue box covers, decorative night light shades and even jewelry. Dolly and Tony also enjoyed their cruises to St. Thomas and St. Croix and, for their twenty-fifth wedding anniversary, they went to Italy.
When her beloved Tony passed away in 2003 after a loving marriage of 57 years, Dolly remained in Florida until 2006. Then she came home to Wayne, settling in and making new friends at Siena Village.
Dolly was energized by family and friends and holidays. She made the best homemade pasta and it was even better when it was smothered in her Sunday gravy (that’s what some Italians call tomato sauce). Her Biscotti was excellent too. She loved company and serving big meals, especially around the holidays. The bigger the holiday, the bigger the meal, and to Dolly, the best part of the holidays was preparing those big meals!
Apparently Dolly was also a bit of a klutz. Once, while visiting loved ones at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, she turned her ankle while walking amongst the monuments. She insisted she was OK only to telephone her daughter Linda later that evening exclaiming “I’m ready to go to the emergency room now.” It turned out that her ankle was actually broken. On a different occasion, she sliced her foot on a shell on the first day of a two-week family vacation down the Jersey Shore. Then there was the time the family was vacationing in Wildwood. Dolly decided to ride a bicycle-built-for-two by herself. Again, it was the first day of vacation and she fell off the bike.
Incredibly generous and devoted, Dolly faithfully cared for her dear husband Tony when he was ill before his passing. She equally would do anything for her two adored granddaughters Janine and Sheri. When they were little, she loved to watch them so her daughter Linda could have a break. She’d let those girls do everything they weren’t allowed to do at home including roller skating on the plastic runners that protected the carpet and she even gave them their first lessons in gambling. Dolly also taught the girls some words in Italian – the ones you couldn’t repeat. When Cabbage Patch Dolls were the latest and greatest craze, Dolly stood in line at a store at five AM, just to make sure she could get some. She loved her three great-grandchildren equally and was so excited when they came and blessed her life.
Dolly was a riot…..a lot of fun! Some would describe her as a “corker” because she had no filter. She told it like it was and she was a bit of a sore loser, but with Dolly, it was all in fun because she was fun.
Dolly will be missed but forever adored by her loving daughter Linda and husband Richard Kimble; her two much-loved granddaughters: Janine and husband Dave Citer of Wayne, and Sheri and husband Mike Fischer of Pompton Lakes; her cherished great-grandchildren: Ryan and Sean Citer and Carson Fischer; and her brother-in-law Ben Mele of Franklin. She was predeceased by her four sisters and four brothers.
In lieu of flowers, those planning an expression of sympathy in Dolly’s name are asked to consider Hospice of NJ, 220 Hamburg Turnpike, Wayne, NJ 07470 .
If you would like to send a private condolence directly to the family use this condolence section.
Friends may visit with the family at the Vander May Wayne Colonial Funeral Home, 567 Ratzer Road, Wayne, on Sunday, December 21, 2014 from 2-6 PM.
Funeral Services will be held on Monday, December 22, 2014 at 10:30 AM from the funeral home. Entombment will follow at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery and Mausoleum, Totowa.
December 17, 2014
Services
Friends may visit with the family at the Vander May Wayne Colonial Funeral Home, 567 Ratzer Road, Wayne, on Sunday, December 21, 2014 from 2-6 PM.
Funeral Services will be held on Monday, December 22, 2014 at 10:30 AM from the funeral home. Entombment will follow at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery and Mausoleum, Totowa.
Connie “Dolly” Mele, age 90, of Wayne, died peacefully on Wednesday, December 17, 2014.
Connie was born in Paterson, the youngest of nine children. She was such a cute little kid, when the milkman stopped by her parent’s house he told Connie’s mom that Connie looked just like a doll. Almost from that day on, Connie was called Dolly.
Paterson was Dolly’s home for all of her childhood and much of her adult life. It was also the home of a nice young boy who lived across the street from Dolly’s family. His name was Anthony and the two of them grew up, eventually falling in love. The saying usually goes, “I married the girl next door.” Well Dolly’s husband Anthony was one of the few guys who could say “I married the girl across the street.” That wedding took place on Sunday, November 3, 1946 at the old Blessed Sacrament Church on 16th Street in Paterson.
They were blessed with their little girl Linda, and Dolly owned the place where all the local woman came to catch up on the neighborhood gossip…..Doll’s Beauty Salon. She started the business on Madison Ave. and three years later she moved it to 18th Street where she made many-a ladies hair look beautiful. The newlyweds continued their lives in Paterson until 1968 when they moved to Wayne. Dolly eventually retired after a total of forty-three years in the business. Tony retired too and the two of them moved to Florida in 1980.
Dolly was a bundle of energy and lots of fun. She was involved in all kinds of activities, especially when living in Florida. You could always find her at Bingo night and she loved to gamble – especially on those slot machines. Since there was no place to gamble in Florida, she would just jump over the state line into Biloxi, Mississippi where they had casinos. She even hit the jackpot once. Dolly also enjoyed playing golf, bowling, playing cards and she was really into crafting. Her family has fond memories of some of her creations like her tissue box covers, decorative night light shades and even jewelry. Dolly and Tony also enjoyed their cruises to St. Thomas and St. Croix and, for their twenty-fifth wedding anniversary, they went to Italy.
When her beloved Tony passed away in 2003 after a loving marriage of 57 years, Dolly remained in Florida until 2006. Then she came home to Wayne, settling in and making new friends at Siena Village.
Dolly was energized by family and friends and holidays. She made the best homemade pasta and it was even better when it was smothered in her Sunday gravy (that’s what some Italians call tomato sauce). Her Biscotti was excellent too. She loved company and serving big meals, especially around the holidays. The bigger the holiday, the bigger the meal, and to Dolly, the best part of the holidays was preparing those big meals!
Apparently Dolly was also a bit of a klutz. Once, while visiting loved ones at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, she turned her ankle while walking amongst the monuments. She insisted she was OK only to telephone her daughter Linda later that evening exclaiming “I’m ready to go to the emergency room now.” It turned out that her ankle was actually broken. On a different occasion, she sliced her foot on a shell on the first day of a two-week family vacation down the Jersey Shore. Then there was the time the family was vacationing in Wildwood. Dolly decided to ride a bicycle-built-for-two by herself. Again, it was the first day of vacation and she fell off the bike.
Incredibly generous and devoted, Dolly faithfully cared for her dear husband Tony when he was ill before his passing. She equally would do anything for her two adored granddaughters Janine and Sheri. When they were little, she loved to watch them so her daughter Linda could have a break. She’d let those girls do everything they weren’t allowed to do at home including roller skating on the plastic runners that protected the carpet and she even gave them their first lessons in gambling. Dolly also taught the girls some words in Italian – the ones you couldn’t repeat. When Cabbage Patch Dolls were the latest and greatest craze, Dolly stood in line at a store at five AM, just to make sure she could get some. She loved her three great-grandchildren equally and was so excited when they came and blessed her life.
Dolly was a riot…..a lot of fun! Some would describe her as a “corker” because she had no filter. She told it like it was and she was a bit of a sore loser, but with Dolly, it was all in fun because she was fun.
Dolly will be missed but forever adored by her loving daughter Linda and husband Richard Kimble; her two much-loved granddaughters: Janine and husband Dave Citer of Wayne, and Sheri and husband Mike Fischer of Pompton Lakes; her cherished great-grandchildren: Ryan and Sean Citer and Carson Fischer; and her brother-in-law Ben Mele of Franklin. She was predeceased by her four sisters and four brothers.
In lieu of flowers, those planning an expression of sympathy in Dolly’s name are asked to consider Hospice of NJ, 220 Hamburg Turnpike, Wayne, NJ 07470 .
Guestbook
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.