Yolanda Violante

Yolanda Violante, wife of the late Gabriele Violante, of Wayne and formerly of Clifton New Jersey, passed away on the evening of the 4th of November 2021. Yolanda is survived by her daughter Nancy and grand-daughter Nicole. She was 86 years old.

Giuseppe Silvestri and Iginia Chiulli welcomed their beautiful daughter, Yolanda, into the world on the 27th of August 1935, in their modest farmhouse in Cugnoli, Italy. This close-knit pastoral community would serve as a backdrop for the many wonderful memories of Yolanda’s youth. She spent her childhood carefree; running through the farm’s lush, golden wheat fields with her two brothers, Bruno and Enrico, picking ripe, sweet figs from the trees, and feeding dried grain to their many pigs and chickens.

As a girl, Yolanda was vibrant and full of energy. Her free spirit and affable nature earned her plenty of friends, many of whom remained in her life until her passing. With not much in the small-town keeping people entertained, these friends and relatives would take turns hosting parties in their homes. These evenings were full of good food and plenty of music and dancing. She loved the sound of the accordions and guitars, and would dance as late into the night as her mother would allow.

When she got older, Yolanda spent a great deal of time in the kitchen with her mother, learning all of the farm specialties. She helped to cure the pork for prosciutto and dried sausage, jarred tomatoes, baked bread and even tried her hand at cheese making. In addition to her culinary pursuits, Yolanda began learning sewing and embroidery. She worked alongside a number of women in the village refining the skills necessary for such a delicate craft.

In 1955, when she was 20 years old, the Silvestri family left their small Abruzzo town for the United States where Yolanda’s father, Giuseppe, had begun to make a life for them. Barely settled in her new home, Yolanda put her sewing skills to work in one of the many garment factories nearby. She would walk from her home on Hope Avenue to the trouser factory owned by Tumminelli and Sons. The work was hard and the hours were many, but Yolanda kept at it, knowing the tremendous value of every penny she managed to save. The clanking factory machines were a big change from the farm animals she was used to, but Yolanda was good at her job and even managed to make a few new friends. Still, she felt like something was missing.

She looked at the love her parents had for each other and wanted the same thing for herself. Then fate, and a few well-intentioned friends sent Gabriele Violante her way. This shy, blue-eyed boy from Villa Celiera would travel all the way from his home in Ontario, Canada just to meet her. She fixed her hair and put on her best dress, hoping to impress the handsome stranger she had only ever seen in photos. The night they met was her first time preparing a meal on her own. Nervous energy buzzed through her as she chopped, minced and sautéed her way around the tiny kitchen.

Her worries were definitely unwarranted, because after only three months of courtship the two were wed. They exchanged wedding vows on Sunday, the 5th of October 1958 at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church on St. Francis Way in Passaic. After a honeymoon to Niagara Falls, they started life as husband and wife. The young couple moved into the second-floor apartment of Yolanda’s family home. It would be here, that in just two years time, they would bring home their beautiful baby girl, Nancy.

Yolanda and Gabriele never missed a day of work. While pregnant, and even after welcoming her new baby into the world, Yolanda was still stitching the pants from Mr. Tumminelli’s factory. He would drop off stacks of clothing at her home and marvel at the incredible speed and skill with which she managed to finish her work.

Eventually, the couple saved up enough money to purchase a place of their own. A great deal of love and pride went into the house they bought on Patricia Place in Clifton. In between shifts at her new job at the State Sportswear factory, Yolanda focused on making the new house a home. She filled it with love and scratch-made Italian delicacies, welcoming in friends and family from all around.

In her free time, Yolanda enjoyed walking around her neighborhood and chatting with all of the friendly faces she encountered. She would cook and bake for her neighbors and friends, often preparing ingredients that came from her own garden. In retirement, Yolanda and her husband Gabriele did a bit of traveling. Along with their friends, they darted all around the country; from St. Augustine, Florida to Asheville, North Carolina, to the Jersey Shore and our nation’s capitol. The couple were excited about all of the memories and souvenirs they collected along the way and couldn’t wait to come home and share them with the people they loved most.

She spent 46 years in her tight-knit Clifton community. A lot of life happened in that time. She and Gabriele raised their daughter and watched her grow into a strong and poised young woman who would go on to have a daughter of her own. She passed on as much as she could to the next generations, sharing with them the recipes and traditions given to her by her own mother and grandmother.

After 46 years in Clifton, Yolanda and her husband moved to Wayne, New Jersey where they lived the remainder of their lives with their daughter Nancy, grand-daughter Nicole and beloved dog Murphy. Her loss has left an incredible void in the lives of those that loved her.

Yolanda was the beloved wife to her husband of 62 years, Gabriele. She was the loving mother of Nancy Cakir of Wayne, and cherished grandmother of Nicole Cakir of Wayne.