Office Hours: Monday – Friday, 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Calls outside of office hours? No worries! Our team will respond within 10–15 minutes.
August 18, 2008
Services
Funeral services were held on Thursday, August 21, 2008 at Vander May Wayne Colonial Funeral Home, 567 Ratzer Road, Wayne.
Stanley S. “Tot” Padreza age 86 of Wayne died Monday, August 18, 2008 at home while receiving the loving care of his family.
He was born and raised in Paterson, NJ. He served in Troop C of the 42nd Cavalry during WWII from January, 1943 to November, 1945. Stanley fought in the battles and campaigns of Ardennes, Central Europe, Normandy, Northern France, and Rhineland. He received the American Service Medal, European-African-Middle Eastern Service Medal, and the Good Conduct Medal.
Stanley and his wife Rae were married in January 1952. Later that year they built their home in Wayne, NJ where they have resided together for the past fifty-six years.
Mr. Padreza was a tool & die maker and supervisor for ITT Nutley, NJ, Gilian Instrument Corp., Wayne, NJ and Thomas Electronics, Totowa, NJ before retiring in 1986.
Stanley was an outdoorsman who loved fishing and hunting.
He was the beloved husband of fifty-six years to Rae (Mauro) Padreza; loving father of Jill Brennan and her husband Edward of Brookfield, CT and Todd Padreza and his wife Marie of Wayne; cherished grandfather of Michelle and Brian Padreza both of Wayne; loved brother of Charles Padreza and his wife Mildred and the late Anita Petraitis.
In lieu of flowers memorial donations to Passaic Valley Hospice, 783 Riverview Dr., Totowa, NJ 07512 or the VFW Post 1931, 126 Newark Pompton Tpk., Wayne, NJ 07470 would be appreciated.
EULOGY
“It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather, we should thank God that such men lived.” This is a quote from General George S. Patton, one of my father’s heroes.
My father came from very humble beginnings. His parents emigrated from Lithuania in the early 1900’s. Living through the Great Depression, he really understood the meaning of, “hard times.” As a youth, he used to troll the railroad tracks on cold mornings in search of coal to help heat his family’s apartment. Humility, however, was not a word in my father’s vocabulary. He was very proud of his heritage, always thrilled to receive a Lithuanian flag or bumper sticker. He was also very proud, as we all were, of his service to our country in WWII. He was a tank gunner and enjoyed telling war stories – a few of them surprisingly light-hearted. I think one of his favorites involved finding a case of French Cognac under the floor boards of a house they had just occupied. You better believe he and his buddies savored every drop of that Cognac!
Returning after the war, my dad really started to enjoy life – he had a motorcycle and a convertible and by all accounts was quite the man about town. Once, he actually drove his motorcycle through the swinging doors of a Paterson saloon, just to get to the bar. I guess he wanted to let everyone know he was back in business.
My father met his match when he met my mother, the love of his life. They worked together at ITT in Nutley and were married in 1952. After about a year they managed to scrape up enough money to build a house on Mac Donald Drive in Wayne. Back then, Wayne was literally in the middle of nowhere. Many of my parents’ friends and family asked, “Why would you want to live out in the sticks? “
But my father knew exactly what he was doing. He was building the foundation for a great life for his family. There were many magical years growing up in a neighborhood full of wonderful friends, especially our next-door neighbors, the Fritz’s. The open porch above our garage was a favorite stopping ground for any neighbor who happened to be strolling by.
My father’s fondest memories were of summer vacations on Long Beach Island. He loved swimming in the ocean, fishing, mixing cocktails on the boom-boom room, and just hanging out with extended family and friends.
Today, I would like to thank God that such a man as my father lived and to celebrate his life. Looking through the old family pictures it became obvious to all of us how fun-loving and young at heart he was. Like many of you, I have very fond and funny memories of him that I will cherish forever.
I think the following description captures the essence of my father – brutally honest (sometimes to a fault), a good provider for his family, fiercely loyal, a strong protector, and above all a lover of life.
Finally, Stanley had one message that I know he would want me to say today: If you don’t smoke, don’t start. If you do smoke, please stop.
If you would like to send a private condolence directly to the family use this condolence section.
Funeral services were held on Thursday, August 21, 2008 at Vander May Wayne Colonial Funeral Home, 567 Ratzer Road, Wayne.
August 18, 2008
Services
Funeral services were held on Thursday, August 21, 2008 at Vander May Wayne Colonial Funeral Home, 567 Ratzer Road, Wayne.
Stanley S. “Tot” Padreza age 86 of Wayne died Monday, August 18, 2008 at home while receiving the loving care of his family.
He was born and raised in Paterson, NJ. He served in Troop C of the 42nd Cavalry during WWII from January, 1943 to November, 1945. Stanley fought in the battles and campaigns of Ardennes, Central Europe, Normandy, Northern France, and Rhineland. He received the American Service Medal, European-African-Middle Eastern Service Medal, and the Good Conduct Medal.
Stanley and his wife Rae were married in January 1952. Later that year they built their home in Wayne, NJ where they have resided together for the past fifty-six years.
Mr. Padreza was a tool & die maker and supervisor for ITT Nutley, NJ, Gilian Instrument Corp., Wayne, NJ and Thomas Electronics, Totowa, NJ before retiring in 1986.
Stanley was an outdoorsman who loved fishing and hunting.
He was the beloved husband of fifty-six years to Rae (Mauro) Padreza; loving father of Jill Brennan and her husband Edward of Brookfield, CT and Todd Padreza and his wife Marie of Wayne; cherished grandfather of Michelle and Brian Padreza both of Wayne; loved brother of Charles Padreza and his wife Mildred and the late Anita Petraitis.
In lieu of flowers memorial donations to Passaic Valley Hospice, 783 Riverview Dr., Totowa, NJ 07512 or the VFW Post 1931, 126 Newark Pompton Tpk., Wayne, NJ 07470 would be appreciated.
EULOGY
“It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather, we should thank God that such men lived.” This is a quote from General George S. Patton, one of my father’s heroes.
My father came from very humble beginnings. His parents emigrated from Lithuania in the early 1900’s. Living through the Great Depression, he really understood the meaning of, “hard times.” As a youth, he used to troll the railroad tracks on cold mornings in search of coal to help heat his family’s apartment. Humility, however, was not a word in my father’s vocabulary. He was very proud of his heritage, always thrilled to receive a Lithuanian flag or bumper sticker. He was also very proud, as we all were, of his service to our country in WWII. He was a tank gunner and enjoyed telling war stories – a few of them surprisingly light-hearted. I think one of his favorites involved finding a case of French Cognac under the floor boards of a house they had just occupied. You better believe he and his buddies savored every drop of that Cognac!
Returning after the war, my dad really started to enjoy life – he had a motorcycle and a convertible and by all accounts was quite the man about town. Once, he actually drove his motorcycle through the swinging doors of a Paterson saloon, just to get to the bar. I guess he wanted to let everyone know he was back in business.
My father met his match when he met my mother, the love of his life. They worked together at ITT in Nutley and were married in 1952. After about a year they managed to scrape up enough money to build a house on Mac Donald Drive in Wayne. Back then, Wayne was literally in the middle of nowhere. Many of my parents’ friends and family asked, “Why would you want to live out in the sticks? “
But my father knew exactly what he was doing. He was building the foundation for a great life for his family. There were many magical years growing up in a neighborhood full of wonderful friends, especially our next-door neighbors, the Fritz’s. The open porch above our garage was a favorite stopping ground for any neighbor who happened to be strolling by.
My father’s fondest memories were of summer vacations on Long Beach Island. He loved swimming in the ocean, fishing, mixing cocktails on the boom-boom room, and just hanging out with extended family and friends.
Today, I would like to thank God that such a man as my father lived and to celebrate his life. Looking through the old family pictures it became obvious to all of us how fun-loving and young at heart he was. Like many of you, I have very fond and funny memories of him that I will cherish forever.
I think the following description captures the essence of my father – brutally honest (sometimes to a fault), a good provider for his family, fiercely loyal, a strong protector, and above all a lover of life.
Finally, Stanley had one message that I know he would want me to say today: If you don’t smoke, don’t start. If you do smoke, please stop.
Guestbook