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February 24, 2011
Services
Friends may visit with the family on Sunday, February 27, 2011 from 2-6 PM at the Vander May Wayne Colonial Funeral Home, 567 Ratzer Road, Wayne.
Funeral services will be held 10 AM on Monday, February 28, 2011 at the Preakness Baptist Church, 1441 Ratzer Rd., Wayne.
Interment will be in Laurel Grove Memorial Park, Totowa.
Emily Grossi (nee Mix) age 84 of Wayne died peacefully on Thursday, February 24, 2011, surrounded by her loving daughters,
Emily was born in Turbotville, PA on April 21, 1926, the exact same day as Queen Elizabeth II. She loved to tell people that the stork switched the babies. She and her family moved to Paterson, NJ when she was a teenager. She graduated from Eastside High School, Paterson, Class of 1944, and attended Paterson State Teachers College, Wayne for two years in an accelerated teachers program. She earned 73 credits towards her degree. She was President of Paterson State’s Freshman Class, Chairman of the War Bond Committee, and Chairman of the Entertainment Committee. For all her achievements in college she won a scholarship to Life Camp.
Emily met the love of her life, Frank Grossi, through her mother. Frank worked with Emily’s mother in a Paterson textile mill. They became friends and eventually Frank met her daughter Emily. They married on January 18, 1947 at the Broadway Baptist Church, Paterson, and enjoyed 57 years of loving marriage before Frank’s passing in 2004.
From 1966 through 1980 she worked for the Wayne Board of Education as a substitute teacher, mainly with the Special Ed classes. In 1980 she took on the job of Resident Manager for the Edward Sisco Village, Wayne and fully retired in 1985.
She was a dedicated member, Deaconess, and Sunday School Teacher, of the Preakness Baptist Church, Wayne where she also served as Secretary to the Board of Christian Education, and member of the pastoral search committee.
Among Emily’s life experiences were her affiliations with many clubs and organizations. Her concern for others is truly inspiring. This is a list of some of the organizations:
- Preakness School P.T.A. She served as Chairman of the Ways & Means Committee and as President.
- In 1957 Emily founded the Golden Age Circle of Wayne (see story below)
- Member of the Wayne Township Recreation Advisory Board since 1958.
- Helped to plan and establish the Sisco Village in Wayne where she has served in many capacities including Board member for over twenty years, Chairman of Occupancy Committee, member of Building and Grounds Committee, and Co-Chairman of the Social Committee.
- Founded Teen-Aides Volunteers who went to nursing homes to help the residents find joy in living as they aged.
- Member of Board of Trustees of Wayne Senior Citizens Housing and member of the sub-committee looking into housing for the handicapped
- Founder and Producer of the Wayne Senior Follies, a group of talented seniors who performed wonderful, entertaining productions, once a year for many years
Emily was the beloved wife of the late Frank Grossi (2004); loving mother of Jan Sivertsen and her husband Paul of Wayne, Peggy Shultz and her husband Steve of Myrtle Beach, SC, Eileen Jewell and her husband Jim of Kingwood, TX, and Nancy Wallace and her husband John of Kingwood, TX; beloved sister of James Mix and his wife Judy of Spring Hill, FL; cherished grandmother of Steve and Jim Shultz, Chris and Mike Roach, Paul C. Sivertsen, John and Ed Wallace, Adrienne Mapel, Jessica and Abigail Jewell and Sarah Wilson, and five great-grandchildren Tyler, Brianna, Tristen and Payton Shultz, and Nadia Roach,
In lieu of flowers, a donation to her beloved church, the Preakness Baptist Church, 1441 Ratzer Rd., Wayne, NJ 07470 would be appreciated.
Founding of Golden Age Circle of Wayne…
A brief story as written by Emily Grossi:
In 1957, when Emily was only 30 years old, she was searching her heart. The following excerpt, written by Emily herself, will explain the founding of the Golden Age Circle of Wayne:
“April of 1956 was a very eventful time for me. I turned 30 years old and I joined the Preakness Baptist Church. I felt very grateful for the blessings God had given me, and I wanted to share that joy with others. But I didn’t know how. I joined the P.T.A., I taught Sunday School, joined the choir, attended all services regularly. But that didn’t seem to be enough. I prayed that God would show me what I could do…and I searched the scriptures. Our minister warned us about just opening the Bible and pointing to a verse looking for answers, cause you might find one not suited to your liking like Judas who went out and hung himself. But I continued searching anyhow, until I found the verse “help the elderly”. God began to open my eyes to many happenings. I would see my next door neighbor’s mother sitting in the yard day after day by herself. She knew no one, there was no one her age in the neighborhood. When I took the kids to school everyday I would see an elderly man on Ratzer Road waiting for the bus to Paterson. I read the papers about the activities provided by the Golden Age of Paterson and I got in touch with the Paterson club and Mr. Ross Pritchard answered the phone. He was very informative and said he would come to Wayne and help us with our club. I got the idea to call the Wayne Recreation Board, and spoke to Ed Mulligan, the chairman. He informed me that they would not form a Golden age club but would support one if it got started. There was my challenge! Ed you must have been 12 when you were the chairman. So my career as a beggar took off. I begged everyone I knew, the mailman, the deliveryman, the bread man, (those days we had bread delivered) Duggans!, my doctors, neighbors, and then the filling in my tooth fell out. I went to the dentist and you guessed it I asked him thinking he would say “no” like everyone else. But he said “I know just the man”. A patient, Lou Rettberg, a fine and intelligent man. And so he was. I did have some leads, but as I contacted them I would get a flat “NO”, “who gave you my name”, or “ I resent that someone thought I was old enough for that”. One lady said, “young lady, I am a very active 80 years old and not ready for the rocking chair”.
Preakness Baptist Church, through their minister, Rev. Robert Fisher, invited us to hold our meetings in the Sunday School room. We met for our first meeting with Pastor Robert Fisher, Mr. Ross Pritchard of the Paterson Golden Age Club, two ladies from our church, Mrs. Ann Christian and Mrs. Bertha Morf, Mrs. Shaw-the mother of the Trends reporter, Bea Rothwell, who I had contacted for some publicity.
Lou and I composed a letter which the Trends published, inviting our Seniors to attend future meetings. Bea Rothwell was very helpful in informing residents throughout the years. At that first meeting, Pastor Fisher was to contact ministers of all churches and synagogues, and announce from their pulpits, the idea of a Senior Citizen club.
Our letter to the Trends went out as well as letter to all newspapers and leading municipal leaders and to all our doctors and dentists. We agreed this club would be non-sectarian and non-political. That we would meet on Thursdays. I was able to provide refreshments for many months to come. The first official meeting was on September 7, 1956 with 12 people present. They voted Mr. Lou Rettberg, Chairman and two weeks later drew up the by-laws and established the name The Golden Age Circle of Wayne.
As time went by, the Sunday School room became too small. We appealed to the then Mayor Robert Roe, and he arranged for us to meet at the Preakness #4 Firehouse on Ratzer Road and the town would pay the rent - $20 monthly. They have been paying the rent ever since. Later on we moved to the Community Firehouse as people complained it was too far away for them to get to from the other side of town. When the P.A.L. building became available we were fortunate enough to hold our meetings there. They have been very good to us here and we appreciated it. Bob Roe was also instrumental in providing town seniors free bus rides to Asbury Park and Jones Beach. Later, our senior picnics too the place for those rides. After a few months from the time the club was started, Mr Rettberg and I went to see Judge DeWalsch in Paterson. He helped the club with the incorporation papers and wouldn’t take any money for it. His dear wife Evelyn was a member then and for many years after. You might remember she was our Corresponding Secretary for many, many years. Lou Rettberg always like to tell the story of the day I called him to help form this club. He had been sitting under a hugh oak tree in his back yard and had noticed all the little acorns lying on the ground. He thought how amazing God is to grow this tiny acorn into a great oak…and that is how we got our motto “From a little acorn a great oak grows”.
If you would like to send a private condolence directly to the family use this condolence section.
Friends may visit with the family on Sunday, February 27, 2011 from 2-6 PM at the Vander May Wayne Colonial Funeral Home, 567 Ratzer Road, Wayne.
Funeral services will be held 10 AM on Monday, February 28, 2011 at the Preakness Baptist Church, 1441 Ratzer Rd., Wayne.
Interment will be in Laurel Grove Memorial Park, Totowa.
February 24, 2011
Services
Friends may visit with the family on Sunday, February 27, 2011 from 2-6 PM at the Vander May Wayne Colonial Funeral Home, 567 Ratzer Road, Wayne.
Funeral services will be held 10 AM on Monday, February 28, 2011 at the Preakness Baptist Church, 1441 Ratzer Rd., Wayne.
Interment will be in Laurel Grove Memorial Park, Totowa.
Emily Grossi (nee Mix) age 84 of Wayne died peacefully on Thursday, February 24, 2011, surrounded by her loving daughters,
Emily was born in Turbotville, PA on April 21, 1926, the exact same day as Queen Elizabeth II. She loved to tell people that the stork switched the babies. She and her family moved to Paterson, NJ when she was a teenager. She graduated from Eastside High School, Paterson, Class of 1944, and attended Paterson State Teachers College, Wayne for two years in an accelerated teachers program. She earned 73 credits towards her degree. She was President of Paterson State’s Freshman Class, Chairman of the War Bond Committee, and Chairman of the Entertainment Committee. For all her achievements in college she won a scholarship to Life Camp.
Emily met the love of her life, Frank Grossi, through her mother. Frank worked with Emily’s mother in a Paterson textile mill. They became friends and eventually Frank met her daughter Emily. They married on January 18, 1947 at the Broadway Baptist Church, Paterson, and enjoyed 57 years of loving marriage before Frank’s passing in 2004.
From 1966 through 1980 she worked for the Wayne Board of Education as a substitute teacher, mainly with the Special Ed classes. In 1980 she took on the job of Resident Manager for the Edward Sisco Village, Wayne and fully retired in 1985.
She was a dedicated member, Deaconess, and Sunday School Teacher, of the Preakness Baptist Church, Wayne where she also served as Secretary to the Board of Christian Education, and member of the pastoral search committee.
Among Emily’s life experiences were her affiliations with many clubs and organizations. Her concern for others is truly inspiring. This is a list of some of the organizations:
- Preakness School P.T.A. She served as Chairman of the Ways & Means Committee and as President.
- In 1957 Emily founded the Golden Age Circle of Wayne (see story below)
- Member of the Wayne Township Recreation Advisory Board since 1958.
- Helped to plan and establish the Sisco Village in Wayne where she has served in many capacities including Board member for over twenty years, Chairman of Occupancy Committee, member of Building and Grounds Committee, and Co-Chairman of the Social Committee.
- Founded Teen-Aides Volunteers who went to nursing homes to help the residents find joy in living as they aged.
- Member of Board of Trustees of Wayne Senior Citizens Housing and member of the sub-committee looking into housing for the handicapped
- Founder and Producer of the Wayne Senior Follies, a group of talented seniors who performed wonderful, entertaining productions, once a year for many years
Emily was the beloved wife of the late Frank Grossi (2004); loving mother of Jan Sivertsen and her husband Paul of Wayne, Peggy Shultz and her husband Steve of Myrtle Beach, SC, Eileen Jewell and her husband Jim of Kingwood, TX, and Nancy Wallace and her husband John of Kingwood, TX; beloved sister of James Mix and his wife Judy of Spring Hill, FL; cherished grandmother of Steve and Jim Shultz, Chris and Mike Roach, Paul C. Sivertsen, John and Ed Wallace, Adrienne Mapel, Jessica and Abigail Jewell and Sarah Wilson, and five great-grandchildren Tyler, Brianna, Tristen and Payton Shultz, and Nadia Roach,
In lieu of flowers, a donation to her beloved church, the Preakness Baptist Church, 1441 Ratzer Rd., Wayne, NJ 07470 would be appreciated.
Founding of Golden Age Circle of Wayne…
A brief story as written by Emily Grossi:
In 1957, when Emily was only 30 years old, she was searching her heart. The following excerpt, written by Emily herself, will explain the founding of the Golden Age Circle of Wayne:
“April of 1956 was a very eventful time for me. I turned 30 years old and I joined the Preakness Baptist Church. I felt very grateful for the blessings God had given me, and I wanted to share that joy with others. But I didn’t know how. I joined the P.T.A., I taught Sunday School, joined the choir, attended all services regularly. But that didn’t seem to be enough. I prayed that God would show me what I could do…and I searched the scriptures. Our minister warned us about just opening the Bible and pointing to a verse looking for answers, cause you might find one not suited to your liking like Judas who went out and hung himself. But I continued searching anyhow, until I found the verse “help the elderly”. God began to open my eyes to many happenings. I would see my next door neighbor’s mother sitting in the yard day after day by herself. She knew no one, there was no one her age in the neighborhood. When I took the kids to school everyday I would see an elderly man on Ratzer Road waiting for the bus to Paterson. I read the papers about the activities provided by the Golden Age of Paterson and I got in touch with the Paterson club and Mr. Ross Pritchard answered the phone. He was very informative and said he would come to Wayne and help us with our club. I got the idea to call the Wayne Recreation Board, and spoke to Ed Mulligan, the chairman. He informed me that they would not form a Golden age club but would support one if it got started. There was my challenge! Ed you must have been 12 when you were the chairman. So my career as a beggar took off. I begged everyone I knew, the mailman, the deliveryman, the bread man, (those days we had bread delivered) Duggans!, my doctors, neighbors, and then the filling in my tooth fell out. I went to the dentist and you guessed it I asked him thinking he would say “no” like everyone else. But he said “I know just the man”. A patient, Lou Rettberg, a fine and intelligent man. And so he was. I did have some leads, but as I contacted them I would get a flat “NO”, “who gave you my name”, or “ I resent that someone thought I was old enough for that”. One lady said, “young lady, I am a very active 80 years old and not ready for the rocking chair”.
Preakness Baptist Church, through their minister, Rev. Robert Fisher, invited us to hold our meetings in the Sunday School room. We met for our first meeting with Pastor Robert Fisher, Mr. Ross Pritchard of the Paterson Golden Age Club, two ladies from our church, Mrs. Ann Christian and Mrs. Bertha Morf, Mrs. Shaw-the mother of the Trends reporter, Bea Rothwell, who I had contacted for some publicity.
Lou and I composed a letter which the Trends published, inviting our Seniors to attend future meetings. Bea Rothwell was very helpful in informing residents throughout the years. At that first meeting, Pastor Fisher was to contact ministers of all churches and synagogues, and announce from their pulpits, the idea of a Senior Citizen club.
Our letter to the Trends went out as well as letter to all newspapers and leading municipal leaders and to all our doctors and dentists. We agreed this club would be non-sectarian and non-political. That we would meet on Thursdays. I was able to provide refreshments for many months to come. The first official meeting was on September 7, 1956 with 12 people present. They voted Mr. Lou Rettberg, Chairman and two weeks later drew up the by-laws and established the name The Golden Age Circle of Wayne.
As time went by, the Sunday School room became too small. We appealed to the then Mayor Robert Roe, and he arranged for us to meet at the Preakness #4 Firehouse on Ratzer Road and the town would pay the rent - $20 monthly. They have been paying the rent ever since. Later on we moved to the Community Firehouse as people complained it was too far away for them to get to from the other side of town. When the P.A.L. building became available we were fortunate enough to hold our meetings there. They have been very good to us here and we appreciated it. Bob Roe was also instrumental in providing town seniors free bus rides to Asbury Park and Jones Beach. Later, our senior picnics too the place for those rides. After a few months from the time the club was started, Mr Rettberg and I went to see Judge DeWalsch in Paterson. He helped the club with the incorporation papers and wouldn’t take any money for it. His dear wife Evelyn was a member then and for many years after. You might remember she was our Corresponding Secretary for many, many years. Lou Rettberg always like to tell the story of the day I called him to help form this club. He had been sitting under a hugh oak tree in his back yard and had noticed all the little acorns lying on the ground. He thought how amazing God is to grow this tiny acorn into a great oak…and that is how we got our motto “From a little acorn a great oak grows”.
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