Jeanne Wache

Jeanne Wache (nee Coyle), age 92 of Wayne, died peacefully on Saturday, September 11, 2021. She has resided in Wayne for fifty-two years.

Jeanne grew up in East Paterson, now known as Elmwood Park. After high school, she went on to earn her Bachelor’s Degree as a business major from Misericordia College, graduating in 1950. Earning a Bachelor’s Degree as a woman in 1950 speaks directly to the strength and determination that defined Jeanne’s character throughout her ninety-two year lifetime. After college, Jeanne began a career teaching third grade at St. Anne’s Catholic School in Fair Lawn. That lasted for just a few short years before she embarked on the most challenging and rewarding career ever; being a full-time wife and mother.

While in college, Jeanne met her future husband, Albert Wache, who lived just a couple blocks away from Jeanne’s childhood home, at a church picnic one summer at St. Leo’s in East Paterson.  Their romance blossomed and they married on July 1, 1951. They settled in East Paterson, first in an apartment then in a tiny cape on Court Street directly next to her sister, Doris. There Jeanne and Doris raised their children as one extended family. Every winter Al and Doris’s husband Herb would convert the connecting backyards into an ice skating rink for Jeanne’s 4 children and Doris’s 5.  Jeanne came from a very close-knit family and when the decision to move was made, Jeanne would not move until which time her parent’s would follow. Jeanne, Doris and their mother, Loretta, would often spend their time shopping, while the men would be at work in their family business. In 1969, Jeanne’s brother Ryan and wife Sandy located the property in Wayne through a family business associate and they made a deal with the builder to acquire four houses, all together in a cul-de-sac. Jeanne and Al moved in across from her parents, next door to her brother with her sister in between her parents and brother. Their families all thrived on the strong bonds and memories that they created there together.

Jeanne was a consummate homemaker, and she made it look easy! She started most days with baking, then tidied up around the house, did everything she could for her kids and grandkids, then cooked a big dinner, and tidied up some more. She loved having company over the house, and there was always plenty of food. She hosted many of the big holidays, and Christmas usually included thirty or more guests! She knew everyone’s favorite food and often cooked it just for you if she knew you were coming to visit! Everyone loved her Mac & Cheese – which was unquestionably the best you ever had. She made hosting look easy, and sent everyone home with plenty of leftovers.

Family was paramount to Jeanne and nothing made her happier than having a house full of kids. Her own kids, grandkids, other people’s kids – it didn’t matter, and the more the merrier! If you walked into her home, then you were family. Her grandchildren and her great-grandchildren (who all call her “Gi-Gi”) all adore her, and she thrived on their love. They will all miss her dearly.

Sorrow visited Jeanne during her ninety-two years. Her eldest son, Eddie, was tragically killed in a car accident in 1982. The pain of this loss was so great that it stopped Jeanne’s heart, quite literally. She spent more than a week in the hospital and required a pacemaker. Despite her heavy grief, she mustered the courage to press on, and found strength in her family and friends. Her motto’s became “you do what you have to do,” and “you must go on.” Fifteen years later, her husband, Albert, died suddenly and unexpectedly. Her heart was heavy with grief again, but she found the will ‘to go on,’ once again supported by the overwhelming love of her family and friends. She was an incredible woman, with a strong faith, and an even stronger love for her family.

Jeanne is survived by her three children; Colleen Markowitz and her husband Alan of Wayne, Allison Huff and her husband Mark of Wayne, and Robert Wache and his wife Terri of Warwick, NY, five grandchildren; Tracy and Stas Pietrucha, Jenni-Leigh Spadaccini, Matthew Huff, and Jaclyn Markowitz, eight great-grandchildren; Elizabeth, Alexis, and Ian Pietrucha, Gia, Ava, and C.J. Spadaccini, and Madison and Hailey Huff, her brother; Edward Ryan Coyle and his wife Sandra, and too many beloved friends to name. She was predeceased by her son Edward in 1982, her husband Albert in 1997.