Josephine Celi, age 99, passed away Feb. 12, 2022 in her home town of Red Bank. She was the daughter of Joseph and Lena Fontana, sister of Salvatore and Anthony Fontana, mother of Elaine Bentley and wife of Leo Celi.
Josephine ran a rooming house called The Riverside Guest House in Red Bank for 17 years. From there, Josephine and Leo moved to Shadow Lake Village, where they spent the next 40-plus years. During those years they enjoyed golf, tennis, bowling and many happy years participating in the variety shows at Shadow Lake. They seemed to have left an impression after all those years, as they are still remembered for being quite entertaining.
One of Josephine’s favorite past times was playing cards with her card group. Something that she looked forward to at least twice a week.
Mom spent her last three-and-a-half years residing at Arbor Terrace in Tinton Falls. As she was always a loving and caring person, even in her later years, she was always there to assist, ready to help anyone in need and still entertaining with her silly ways.
Josephine is survived by her daughter Elaine Bentley, her grandson Matthew Bentley and her great-grandson Zachary Bentley.
A memorial service with prayer and eulogy was held Feb. 20 at John Day Funeral Home, Red Bank.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made in Josephine’s name to Alzheimer’s NJ, 425 Eagle Rock Ave., #203, Roseland, NJ 07068 or weblink.donorperfect.com/jcelimemorial.
