Madalien Gomes

Madalien Gomes, age 78, of Barnegat, formerly of Nutley, passed on Friday, February 4, 2022.

She was born and raised in the Ironbound section of Newark to Jose and Anna Amaral.  She graduated from Eastside High School in Newark, where she was a member of the choir, Glee Club, Yearbook Staff, and Prom Committee with the Class of 1961. After high school she continued her education at the Katherine Gibbs School in New York City where she trained to be a secretary. She often reminisced that, during her training at the school she was required to wear dress suits, hats, and matching gloves.

Just out of secretarial school Madalien worked for the Sealand Corporation at Port Elizabeth as an Executive Secretary in New Jersey from 1961 through 1972.  In 1972 she was blessed with a daughter Michele and dedicated herself to raising her.  When Michele was old enough, she again entered the workforce as an Executive Secretary for several area corporations including Becton Dickinson Corporation having worked in both their Franklin Lakes and Rutherford locations and the Ivers Lee Corporation.  She completed the final ten years of her career at the Parsippany Building Department as an Executive Assistant before retiring in 2005.

Madalien met the love of her life Joseph “Joe” Gomes at a Dance at the Portuguese Sport Club in Newark.   Joe and Madalien, both of Portuguese heritage,  hit it off soon after their first date together at Barcelona’s Restaurant in Garfield. Joe proposed marriage in “late December back in 1963” after he went with his sister to pick out a ring.  They had a long engagement before marrying on June 19, 1965.  They married at Our Lady of Fatima Church in Newark where Madalien’s parents had been founding members. After a reception at the Royal Hawaiian Palms in Lyndhurst they honeymooned in Acapulco.  After their honeymoon, they settled into an apartment and eventually a home on Nutley Avenue in Nutley. Madalien and Joe’s lives changed forever when their marriage was blessed with a daughter Michele.  Their world revolved around her, whether it was family vacations or attending the multitude of dance recitals.  The family lived in Nutley for over thirty-five years and they did just about everything together.  If you saw Joe, Madalien wasn’t far behind and vice-versa.  Joe always wanted to go out and about and you could set your watch to them going to the diner or, after Saturday Mass, they would go to Mr. Bruno’s Restaurant. Many family memories were made during annual trips to Myrtle Beach. Joe and Madalien chose Myrtle Beach as they could stretch their vacation dollars as far as possible, back in those early days.  They would often cook in Nutley and pack all, including the meatballs, in the car for the trip. They would go the same time every year and made several life-long friends from Ohio, Canada, and Virginia who also vacationed at the same time and place with them.  After Michele was married, Madalien and Joe also enjoyed going to Lancaster, PA to visit and do some holiday shopping.

Madalien and Joe planned and built their retirement home in Barnegat, but Joe passed away in 2005 just before the home in Barnegat was finished. Madalien stayed with their plan and moved into the home just a few months after his passing.

Madalien truly enjoyed her retirement with many trips, cruising the world, and just spending time with her friends in Barnegat including a group known as “The Singles” which eventually became known as the “Golden Girls.”  Madalien’s years as an Executive Secretary transcended to her personal life where she continued to be super organized and fastidious and fashionable regarding her appearance and home. She enjoyed entertaining friends and her home was always the go-to place for family celebrations…the more the better.  She also loved sitting quietly with a good book, watching movies, music (50’s and musical theater), and trips to Radio City Music Hall in New York City.  Most recently Madalien was frustrated by the COVID 19 pandemic and how it was “stealing time from me” as trips she had planned to Portugal and Italy were canceled.

Her life was also drastically changed when she was blessed with a granddaughter, Lexi. Joe passed when Lexi was just 11 months old but Madalien was a part of her life even from 100 miles away.  Madalien would get in her spotless caddy and travel North, for class plays, sporting events, and school concerts. She was a part of Lexi’s first trip to Disney World in Florida and Lexi was very fortunate to often vacation with both Nana Madalien and Nana Carol. She loved being a part of Lexi’s passion for soccer, by attending many games and tournaments from the beginning at Wayne Boys and Girls Club, through Club/Academy and Wayne Valley High School soccer, and even attended her National Championship in Colorado. From freezing cold to blistering heat and torrential downpours, Nana was a loyal fan to cheer her on. Lexi has many fond memories of visiting Nana’s house at the Jersey Shore, most notably Beach Haven, Sweet Jenny’s, and discovering WaWa at four years old. Recently Lexi committed to attending Ithaca College and their Women’s Soccer Program, so Madalien had already thought about continuing these traditions and memories and was thinking about moving back to North Jersey.

Madalien was the devoted wife of the late Joe Gomes (d. 2005); loving mother of Michele Jassin and her husband Edward of Wayne; cherished grandmother of Lexi Jassin of Wayne.  She is survived by her Aunt and Uncle, Mariana and Jose Romao, her sister-in-law, Celeste Hadley, cousins and many nieces and nephews. She will be terribly missed by cherished friends.

In lieu of flowers memorial donations to the Christopher Reeve Foundation www.Christopherreeve.org or St Jude Children’s Hospital www.stjude.org would be appreciated.