Bernadette C. Reilly of Tinton Falls passed away peacefully at home Jan. 28, aged 105.
Born in Meriden, Connecticut as the second of six children to the late Henry and Mary (Wollschlager) Veronneau in 1913, Bernadette overcame serious illness as a child. She emerged a strong, principled woman guided by her Catholic faith and her determination to remain undaunted by life’s mutability.
After several years working in administrative roles in Hartford and Waterbury, Bernadette married Vincent E. Reilly of Stamford, and they made their home in New Jersey. She poured herself joyfully into the role of wife and homemaker, which she considered a vocation. Bernadette loved each of her five children wholly and individually. She filtered family life through a faith-filled lens and managed her home with a practical eye. After Vincent passed on unexpectedly in 1969, she continued her “life of service,” always placing the needs of others above her own.
During her later years, Bernadette most enjoyed time with her family, whether at her home, their homes, or vacations abroad. She starred in numerous family dinners and gatherings, reveled in the simplicity of nature and delighted in her nine grandchildren.
Besides her husband, she is predeceased by siblings, Lawrence Veronneau, Mildred Richards, Joseph Veronneau, Doris Becker and Henry Veronneau; granddaughter Denise Callahan; and son-in-law John Bohuslaw.
Surviving are her children, James T. Reilly and his wife Rita of Middletown, Mary and her husband Loughlin Callahan of London, Denise and her husband Thomas McMann of Red Bank, Joanne Reilly (Bohuslaw) of Avon, Connecticut, and Janice and her husband Robert Wallace of Milton, Massachusetts; her grandchildren, Christopher Callahan, James Reilly and his wife Blanca, Joseph Reilly and his wife Eve, Thomas Reilly, Katherine Reilly Piccoli and her husband Christopher, Robert Wallace and his wife Christine, Anne Wallace and Ellen Wallace. Also surviving are her great-grandchildren, Edward and Aaron Reilly, Anna and Madison Reilly.
The family expresses deep gratitude to Bernadette’s devoted caregiver Mrs. Belkis Zunigamedina.
Visitation was held Jan. 31 at the John E. Day Funeral Home, Red Bank. A Mass of Christian Burial was held Feb. 1 at St. James Roman Catholic Church in Red Bank. Interment followed at St. Boniface Cemetery in Meriden, Connecticut.
In lieu of flowers memorial donations may be sent in Bernadette’s memory to a charity of your choice. Please visit Bernadette’s memorial website available at johnedayfuneralhome.com.
