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April 2, 2014
Services
Friends may visit with the family at the Vander May Wayne Colonial Funeral Home, 567 Ratzer Road, Wayne, on Friday, April 4, 2014 from 2-4 & 7-9 PM.
Funeral Services will be held at 8 AM on Saturday from the funeral home, then to Holy Cross RC Church, Wayne, where at 9 AM a Funeral Mass will be offered. Burial will follow at the Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, Totowa.
Walter “Wally” Esposito, age 95 of Wayne, died peacefully on Wednesday, April 2, 2014.
Wally grew up in Paterson and Newark, attending Barringer High School in Newark. The Great Depression was in full swing during his adolescent years and like so many others, he left school to join the workforce. His brother in-law Joe taught him how to be a barber when he was just a teenager, so he opened his own barbershop, but that wasn’t paying the bills, so from there he worked for his uncle driving a truck until he was eventually drafted into the U.S. Army Air Corps in July of 1941 at the age of 23. He was sent to Alaska and then set sail across the Pacific, bound for the Philippines, when Pearl Harbor was attacked by the Japanese and the Philippines were captured. Fortunately his troop ship was turned around before he got there. He returned to the mainland where he was trained as a cook and then assigned to the Aleutian Islands to serve in Alaska. He was discharged in 1945 soon after the Japanese surrender.
At one point, after returning from the service, he became partners with his brother in-law Carmen in a construction company before joining Universal Manufacturing in Paterson as a Foreman. He eventually retired from Unimatic Corp in Fairfield in 1980.
Wally was an avid fisherman and hunter. He would frequently go fishing before work, catch a few trout or bass in the river, then go to work. He loved to spend time up at Greenwood Lake with his boat, cruising around with his wife, and fishing. On one occasion, he caught so many fish that he couldn’t possibly eat them all himself. He invited a bunch of friends over for breakfast and shared his catch!
It was during his time in the service that Wally became skilled at cooking for large groups, and he used those skills throughout his life, especially at the Elks Lodge in Pompton Lakes. He cooked not only for the Elks events, but also for those who rented the hall out for their own parties. He loved to cook for big parties and was very good at it. He joined the Elks after retiring and he made many good friends there. He and Antoinette went on many of the Elks trips and had a great time with all the other families. Those were great times for Wally and he made lots of memories.
Wally met his wife Antoinette (Cascone) sometime around 1938. They were introduced by one of her cousins at the St. Michael’s Feast in Paterson. They hit it off right from the start and were married on October 26, 1941, just as Wally was shipping off to the Army. They enjoyed a honeymoon of just one night in New York City before Wally had to go back to his Army barracks at Fort Monmouth, NJ. Antoinette moved down to a friend’s house near Fort Monmouth, and Wally would sneak off of the base from time to time so they could see each other. When he was transferred to Seattle, she moved out there as well so they could see each other as often as possible. After the war was over, they moved to Paterson before building a home in Wayne in 1956, where they have lived together ever since. Over the years, they’ve traveled to Italy, St. Thomas, Bermuda, the Bahamas, and Sanibel Island was among one of his favorite destinations. Wally loved the Jersey Shore and crabbing at his sister’s house in Forked River, NJ. The crabbing there was great. He would catch as many as possible and have his wife Antoinette make a wonderful fresh crab sauce that everyone raved about. He also enjoyed traveling just a little further south to Atlantic City, where the Taj Mahal was another favorite destination. In all, Wally and Antoinette have enjoyed a remarkable seventy two years of marriage together, filled with lots of great memories, good friends, and loving family.
Wally is survived by his wife of seventy two years; Antoinette of Wayne, his two sons; Wally and his wife Kathy of Riverdale, Joseph and his wife Carolyn of Wayne, four grandchildren; Michael Esposito and his wife Gianine of Morristown, Kristin Esposito of Needham, MA, Corey Esposito of Wayne, and Ty Esposito of Wayne, one Brother; Paul Esposito of Florida, one great-grandson; Christopher Kiesling of Needham, MA, and many nieces and nephews who he loved very much. Wally was predeceased by three brothers; Larry, Jimmy, and Rocky, as well as by his two sisters; Mary Fallavine and Bernadette Bruno.
Friends wishing to make a memorial donation in Wally’s honor are asked to please consider the Wayne Township Memorial First Aid Squad, PO Box 2004, Wayne, NJ 07474.
If you would like to send a private condolence directly to the family use this condolence section.
Friends may visit with the family at the Vander May Wayne Colonial Funeral Home, 567 Ratzer Road, Wayne, on Friday, April 4, 2014 from 2-4 & 7-9 PM.
Funeral Services will be held at 8 AM on Saturday from the funeral home, then to Holy Cross RC Church, Wayne, where at 9 AM a Funeral Mass will be offered. Burial will follow at the Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, Totowa.
April 2, 2014
Services
Friends may visit with the family at the Vander May Wayne Colonial Funeral Home, 567 Ratzer Road, Wayne, on Friday, April 4, 2014 from 2-4 & 7-9 PM.
Funeral Services will be held at 8 AM on Saturday from the funeral home, then to Holy Cross RC Church, Wayne, where at 9 AM a Funeral Mass will be offered. Burial will follow at the Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, Totowa.
Walter “Wally” Esposito, age 95 of Wayne, died peacefully on Wednesday, April 2, 2014.
Wally grew up in Paterson and Newark, attending Barringer High School in Newark. The Great Depression was in full swing during his adolescent years and like so many others, he left school to join the workforce. His brother in-law Joe taught him how to be a barber when he was just a teenager, so he opened his own barbershop, but that wasn’t paying the bills, so from there he worked for his uncle driving a truck until he was eventually drafted into the U.S. Army Air Corps in July of 1941 at the age of 23. He was sent to Alaska and then set sail across the Pacific, bound for the Philippines, when Pearl Harbor was attacked by the Japanese and the Philippines were captured. Fortunately his troop ship was turned around before he got there. He returned to the mainland where he was trained as a cook and then assigned to the Aleutian Islands to serve in Alaska. He was discharged in 1945 soon after the Japanese surrender.
At one point, after returning from the service, he became partners with his brother in-law Carmen in a construction company before joining Universal Manufacturing in Paterson as a Foreman. He eventually retired from Unimatic Corp in Fairfield in 1980.
Wally was an avid fisherman and hunter. He would frequently go fishing before work, catch a few trout or bass in the river, then go to work. He loved to spend time up at Greenwood Lake with his boat, cruising around with his wife, and fishing. On one occasion, he caught so many fish that he couldn’t possibly eat them all himself. He invited a bunch of friends over for breakfast and shared his catch!
It was during his time in the service that Wally became skilled at cooking for large groups, and he used those skills throughout his life, especially at the Elks Lodge in Pompton Lakes. He cooked not only for the Elks events, but also for those who rented the hall out for their own parties. He loved to cook for big parties and was very good at it. He joined the Elks after retiring and he made many good friends there. He and Antoinette went on many of the Elks trips and had a great time with all the other families. Those were great times for Wally and he made lots of memories.
Wally met his wife Antoinette (Cascone) sometime around 1938. They were introduced by one of her cousins at the St. Michael’s Feast in Paterson. They hit it off right from the start and were married on October 26, 1941, just as Wally was shipping off to the Army. They enjoyed a honeymoon of just one night in New York City before Wally had to go back to his Army barracks at Fort Monmouth, NJ. Antoinette moved down to a friend’s house near Fort Monmouth, and Wally would sneak off of the base from time to time so they could see each other. When he was transferred to Seattle, she moved out there as well so they could see each other as often as possible. After the war was over, they moved to Paterson before building a home in Wayne in 1956, where they have lived together ever since. Over the years, they’ve traveled to Italy, St. Thomas, Bermuda, the Bahamas, and Sanibel Island was among one of his favorite destinations. Wally loved the Jersey Shore and crabbing at his sister’s house in Forked River, NJ. The crabbing there was great. He would catch as many as possible and have his wife Antoinette make a wonderful fresh crab sauce that everyone raved about. He also enjoyed traveling just a little further south to Atlantic City, where the Taj Mahal was another favorite destination. In all, Wally and Antoinette have enjoyed a remarkable seventy two years of marriage together, filled with lots of great memories, good friends, and loving family.
Wally is survived by his wife of seventy two years; Antoinette of Wayne, his two sons; Wally and his wife Kathy of Riverdale, Joseph and his wife Carolyn of Wayne, four grandchildren; Michael Esposito and his wife Gianine of Morristown, Kristin Esposito of Needham, MA, Corey Esposito of Wayne, and Ty Esposito of Wayne, one Brother; Paul Esposito of Florida, one great-grandson; Christopher Kiesling of Needham, MA, and many nieces and nephews who he loved very much. Wally was predeceased by three brothers; Larry, Jimmy, and Rocky, as well as by his two sisters; Mary Fallavine and Bernadette Bruno.
Friends wishing to make a memorial donation in Wally’s honor are asked to please consider the Wayne Township Memorial First Aid Squad, PO Box 2004, Wayne, NJ 07474.
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