Gloria M. DiRuggiero, age 77 of Wayne, died on Wednesday, April 4, 2018 surrounded by her loving family.  She has lived in Wayne for nearly fifty years.

Gloria had taught fourth grade in Englewood Cliffs for seven years during the 1960’s.  It was in Englewood Cliffs that she met a fellow teacher, Claire Kinn, and they have remained dear friends since.  Gloria taught CCD at Immaculate Heart of Mary RC Church in Wayne during the 1980’s, and she had been a substitute teacher in the Wayne schools for roughly 10 years.

Gloria grew up in Manhattan and graduated from Fordham University, where she earned her Master’s Degree in Education.  She was a very athletic woman, skilled at volleyball, tennis, and skiing.  She had been a member of the Pas Clif Ski Club since the 1960’s, and had skied in many wonderful places.  Those ski trips were made memorable not only because of the destinations, but because of the great friends she enjoyed in the club.  Those friendships have endured for more than fifty years now, and Gloria counts her fellow ski club members among her most dear friends.  Along with her family, she had also enjoyed some great travel all over the country.  She was always fond of Reading, PA and the surrounding Amish country, which was among her favorite places to visit.

Gloria was also artistically inclined and loved photography, gardening, genealogy, bird watching and scrapbooking.  Her garden eventually became mostly Marigolds because those were the only thing the deer wouldn’t eat, and she traced her family history back into the 1600’s!  She made unique scrapbooks for each of her grandchildren, filled with family photos, and her love is evident on every page.  There was truly nothing that made her more happy than her family, and especially of course; her grandchildren.  She had also been a devoted daughter, taking “extreme loving care” of both of her parents.  She was simply a loving and kind wife, mother, daughter, sister, and grandmother who was happiest sharing her love with each of them.  She was such a friendly person and had a habit of talking to anyone, anywhere!  She made friends everywhere she went, which sometimes caused a short trip somewhere to turn into a much longer endeavor than anyone expected.

Gloria met her husband, Michael, at a dance in Englewood, NJ.  Mike was an enthusiastic dancer from Paterson and, along with his friends, he went to all the dances they could find in the area.  After meeting Gloria there, he encouraged her to join the Pas Clif Ski Club and they began skiing together.  It didn’t take long before they fell in love and wedding bells rang on May 10, 1969.  They settled to Wayne just a few years later where they raised their family and have lived ever since.  Mike will cherish the nearly fifty years of memories they made together, and he’ll miss her dearly.

Gloria is survived by her devoted husband; Michael of Wayne, her two loving children; Catherine “Cathy” Kirk and her husband Damon of Ramsey, and Michael and his wife Tara Bandman of Dobbs Ferry, NY, four grandchildren; April and Paige Kirk of Ramsey, and Myles and Oliver DiRuggiero of Dobbs Ferry, NY, and one sister; Evelyn Pruiksma and her husband Walter of Rochester, VT.

Donations in Gloria’s memory would be greatly appreciated.  Please consider donating to Operation Smile, 3641 Faculty Blvd, Virginia Beach, VA 23453, www.operationsmile.org, or to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105, www.stjude.org.