Fortunata Santangelo

Fortunata Santangelo, age 75, of Riverdale, passed away at home surrounded by family on Saturday, August 31, 2019.

Born in Sicily, Italy, Fortunata was one of seven children. When she was young, her mother and three of her six siblings left to start a new life in the United States.  As you can image this must have been a very difficult decision for Fortunata’s mother. Circumstances restricted her mother from bringing four of her children along. This meant that at the age of seven, Fortunata had to leave school and become the main caregiver of her three year old sister and fourteen month old brother. After a period of about five years, Fortunata’s mother received permission to have her remaining four children sent to her in the United States. Fortunata’s mother sent tickets for the steamship SS Olympia.  However, once aboard the Olympia, the kids were told they could not travel to America, since they were all under the age of eighteen.  However, they were fortunate, and a complete stranger stepped forward and took full responsibility for the kids, during their passage.  The family has a great photo of the reunited family at Ellis Island, from an article published in the paper.

The children settled into their new home in Hackensack, New Jersey where Fortunata enrolled in school for a few years to help her learn the English language. She dropped out of school to work with her mother at Goldberg Slipper Factory to help the family.  Fortunata also attended beauty school and after graduating, worked as a beautician for a short time.  Fortunata married at the age of seventeen and was blessed with four children and eight grandchildren. When her children were older, she obtained her General Education Diploma (GED) and found work with the Valley National Bank in Wayne.  She worked there for several years before retiring in 1999.

Fortunata will be lovingly remembered as a great Italian cook who always went overboard with her holiday cooking.  The special ingredient of love she cooked into her lasagna and ricotta pie will be greatly missed.  She enjoyed summer vacations at the Wildwood Crest section of the Jersey Shore and enjoyed family poker and Monopoly. Fortunata was a caring, strong willed, honorable woman. Most of all, her family meant everything to her.  She had a great and loving relationship with all of her children, grandchildren, siblings, and friends. She also enjoyed the many friends she made traveling with the senior citizen group she belonged to. Fortunata was also a dedicated Catholic and parishioner of Saint Mary’s Church in Pompton Lakes.

Fortunata was the loving mother of the late Ralph Santangelo (d.1997), Gina Perrine and her husband Robert of Mahwah, Anthony Santangelo of Cedar Knolls, and Vera Santangelo of Boonton; she was the cherished grandmother of Daniel, James, Emily, Anthony, Marc, Evan, Giancarlo, and Emma; loved sister of Annette Vogt of Wanaque and her late husband William Vogt (d.2017), Arthur Isgro and his wife Cherie of Ringwood, Luciano Isgro and his wife Santina of Little Ferry, Tindero Isgro and his wife Carrie of Florida, the late Salvatore Isgro (d.2014) and his wife Stella, and the late Joseph Isgro (d.2004) and his wife Patricia.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be sent to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.