Nannette Begley

Nannette Clair Begley, of Wayne, NJ, our beloved mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, passed away on July 11, 2024, at the age of 88. Known as “Nan,” she was born on September 28, 1935, to George and Marie (nee Dehm) Burgmeyer.

Nannette was born in Newark and spent her childhood in Union before losing her father in 1946, when she was just 10 years old. After his death, she and her mother, Marie, moved to Clifton, where Nannette spent her childhood alongside her cousin, Betty, who was like a sister to her. After graduating from high school, she attended the St. Mary’s School of Nursing in Orange, NJ, and graduated in 1955. After graduating, she began her career as an Operating Room Nurse at Montclair Community Hospital. From 1972 until the school's closure in 1990, she served as the school nurse at Neumann Prep High School in Wayne, a period she cherished and remembered with the fondest memories.

While working as a nurse, Nannette met Eugene Michael Kimidy on a blind date, and on August 31, 1957, they wed and made their home in Wayne, NJ, where they raised their 4 daughters: Kathleen, Carole, Michele, and Patricia.

In 1974, the family lost Gene to lung cancer, just a day shy of his 44th birthday, and Nannette continued to raise her daughters with help from her mother, Marie. A few years after Gene’s passing, Nannette met Martin Begley on another blind date. Many times she said, “I went on two blind dates in my life, and I married both of them.” She and Marty traveled the world together, visiting many European countries as well as Australia and New Zealand. They split their time between Lakewood, NJ, and Naples, FL, and merged their families into one, enjoying each of their combined 14 grandchildren. After losing Marty in 2004, Nannette eventually made Naples, FL her year-round home until 2023 when she returned to her hometown of Wayne to be closer to family. 

Nannette was loved by all those who knew her. She was remarkably skilled in many ways, from learning how to use a computer to playing the piano. She enjoyed playing card games, video games, mahjong, bingo, and more. She was incredibly talented at crocheting and made many precious items for her family, including Christmas stockings, blankets, stuffed animals, and more. She was a wonderful cook who enjoyed a nice glass of Scotch while enjoying the company of those she loved most. She was also a devout Catholic who enjoyed teaching CCD and was a founding member of the Our Lady of Consolation Church in Wayne, where she made many decades-long friendships. In recent years, she also began the tradition of giving each of her grandchildren Christmas ornaments, which they will always remember.

In addition to being predeceased by her husbands, Nannette was also predeceased by her parents, George (1946), and Marie (1983); her husband’s siblings, James Kimidy (2016), Patricia O’Shea (2022), and Veronica Grabowski (2008); her brothers-in-law, Joseph O’Shea (1991) and John Grabowski (2022); and her first cousin, Betty Wrath (2024).

Nannette is survived by her loving family, including her children: Kathleen Arts and her husband, Christian; Carole Metcalfe and her husband, Jude; Michele Resavage and her husband, Robert; and Patricia Kimidy. Also survived by Michael Begley and Linda Bosland. Nannette was also a very proud grandmother and great-grandmother, survived by 14 grandchildren and 20 great-grandchildren: Kathy’s daughters, Meghan Scozzari, her husband, Michael, and their children Brendan and Elizabeth; and Kaitlin Kroptavich, and her children, Lily and James; Carole’s children, Christopher, Sean, and Erin Metcalfe; Michele’s daughters, Stephanie Balben, her husband, James, and their children, Cecelia, Weston, and Maeve; and Courtney Resavage; and Michael’s children, Christine Begley, her husband Thomas Schaumann, and their children, Emma, Alice, and Owen; Michael Begley, his wife Amy, and their children Eden and Ella; Maureen Sheehan, her husband, Michael, and their children Catherine and Michael; Kyle Begley and his wife, Julie Wallace-Begley; and Derek Begley, his wife, Mary, and their daughter, Ruth. Also survived by grandchildren Kristen Nyman, her husband, John, and their children, Jackson, Grace, and Conner; and Robert Bosland and his sons, Sean and Liam; as well as her sister-in-law, Nancy Kimidy; daughters-in-law Colleen Graham and Peggy Quinn Begley; and her life-long friend, Phyllis Russo.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Special Olympics New Jersey, Holy bones at St. Mary’s Church in Pompton Lakes or Compassion Cafe at the Sea Shell Resort in Beach Haven, NJ. 

Nannette's funeral mass will be livestreamed from St. Mary's RC Church's Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/StMarysPomptonLakesFunerals

Once the funeral mass is livestreamed, it will remain on Youtube for future viewings at the link below:

https://www.youtube.com/c/StMarysPomptonLakes