Obituary of Leonarda Fedele

OBITUARY OF LEONARDA FEDELE Leonarda Fedele (nee Grillo), age 94, preceded by her husband Salvatore, passed away peacefully on August 23, 2020. She was a loving and devoted mother of Joseph Fedele and his wife Josephine, Vincenza Tulipano and her husband Frank. She cherished her four grandchildren and six great grandchildren. She was also preceded in death by her sister Mary Cammarata and her husband Joseph, and her brother Gaetano Grillo and his wife Isabella. She was the dear sister-in-law of Averina Fedele and her late husband Giuseppe. Lea is also survived by many nieces and nephews. Lea was born in Detroit, Michigan in 1926. After losing her mother during the depression, at the age of four, her father brought his three children ages 6, 4 and 2 to be raised and educated in Borgetto, Sicily. She returned to the United States before losing her U.S. citizenship at the age of 21. This enabled her to reunite her family one by one in America. Growing up in Sicily she always wanted to be a teacher. But at that point in time it was not possible. Her love for children never left her heart when caring for her grandchildren. Lea's huge heart spilled over in knitting and crocheting blankets for her children, family members, and friends. Lea also crocheted sweaters, hats, booties and blankets for all her grandchildren so that they would always have a small piece of her love forever. Her grandchildren always looked forward to sleeping over Grandma Lea and Grandpa Toto's home. Grandpa would play with his grandchildren in the day time. Grandma Lea would spend endless hours with her grandchildren, teaching them songs and prayers, coloring, and playing with them. As a housewife and mother her cooking was always in abundance, very hot and no one went away hungry. Her homemade pizza, pasta, fried dough and meatball sandwiches were always in great demand, especially around the holidays. Her love for family continued on holidays as the entire family gathered around the dinner table to enjoy the festive meals she prepared. Lea worked successfully as a seamstress on Staten Island making samples for women's raincoats, dresses and very diligently embroidered uniforms to perfection for the U.S. Military, marching bands and schools throughout the U.S. Lea will always be remembered as a loving, caring, nurturing, good listener, friend and story teller, welcoming everyone with open arms and making them feel like family. In lieu of flowers, a memorial donation in the name of Leonarda Fedele may be made to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital or any charity of your choice. Family and friends may visit on Thursday, 8/27/20 from 4:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Funeral from Matthew Funeral Home, Inc., 2508 Victory Boulevard, SI, Friday, 8/28/20 departing at 11:00 a.m. Funeral Mass will be held at Holy Family R.C. Church at 11:30 a.m. Interment will follow at Resurrection Cemetery.