Obituaries

Randy Barkowski

Randy Barkowski died on Jan. 17 in St. Michael’s Medical Center. He was 56.

Born in Orange, he was a lifelong Kearny resident.

Arrangements were by the Armitage and Wiggins Funeral Home, 596 Belgrove Dr., Kearny. A prayer service was held at the funeral home, followed by a private cremation.

Randy was a truck driver for Barttlestone Glass in Belleville.

He was the dear companion of Kathleen Donnenberg; the son of Irene and the late Chet Barkowski; step-father of Joseph Donnenberg; brother of Bob (Aline) Barkowski and the late Richard. He is also survived by his two pals, Wishbone and Jazmine.

In lieu of flowers, kindly make a donation to the ASPCA. To leave an online condolence, please visit www.armitagewiggins.com.

Frank M. Cardoza

 

 

Frank M. Cardoza, 93, died on Jan. 19 at home.

Born in Falls Port, Mass, he lived the majority of his life in Kearny.

Arrangements were by the Armitage and Wiggins Funeral Home, 596 Belgrove Drive, Kearny. A funeral Mass was held in St. Stephen’s Church, Kearny. Internment was in Holy Cross Cemetery.

Frank was a Naval Chief Quartermaster in the United States Navy during World War II and was past commander of the American Legion, U.V.O. and Amvets. He owned and operated Bendix Automat in Kearny for many years and was a Hudson County Sheriff’s officer and constable. He was a member of the Knights of Columbus and a founding member of the Portuguese Cultural Association. He was twice-honored as Grand Marshall of Kearny’s Memorial Day Parade and was the 2008 Senior Citizen of the Year. He was the third ward democratic chairman for over 25 years and was recently a member of the U.E.Z. Board and was Kearny’s Deputy Mayor.

Husband of the late Lillian (nee Kearns), he is survived by his daughter and her husband, Veronica “Sandy” and Jim Doran. He was the grandfather of Jim Jr. (Elaine) Doran, Brian (Amanda) Doran, Sian-Elizabeth (Bob) Schoendorf and Shannon (Ryan) Murphy; great-grandfather of Jimmy, Chris, Sianna-Lee, Lilli-Ana, Emily, Robert and Payton; also surviving is his beloved nephew and wife Butch and Viviane Puopolo.

In lieu of flowers, kindly consider a donation to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital. To leave online condolence, please visit www.armitagewiggins.com

Jack “Pin” Conlin

Jack “Pin” Conlin died on Jan. 20 at home. He was 53. Born in Newark, he was a lifelong Kearny resident.

Arrangements are by the Armitage and Wiggins Funeral Home, 596 Belgrove Drive ,Kearny. A funeral service will be held on Wednesday, Jan. 25, at 11 a.m. in the funeral home. Entombment will be in Holy Cross Cemetery.

Jack was a crane operator for Sims Metal and Recycling in Jersey City. He served twice in the Army, first right out of high school and then re-enlisted some years later and served in Desert Storm. He was an avid sports fan.

He is survived by his sisters and their husbands Debra and Stephen Andrews, Diana and Jim Eggie, Donna Conlin-Sawler (the late Richard) and Denise and Juan Dominguez; also surviving are 11 nieces and nephews and three great-nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers kindly consider a donation to Kearny Little League c/o the funeral home. To leave an online condolence, please visit www.armitagewiggins.com.

Helene Poulos

 

Helene Poulos, (nee Hanna) 66, of Lyndhurst, died on Monday, Jan. 16.

Mrs. Poulos was born in Jersey City, lived in Kearny for 25 years, and was a current resident of Lyndhurst.

Helene was a real estate broker serving the West Hudson and South Bergen area for over 20 years, then became owner of Park Avenue Realty, East Rutherford, for the past few years.

She served as a director and member of the Meadowlands Board of Realtors and as chairperson of their educational committee. In Lyndhurst, she was a member of the Emblem Club and the Elks.

Helene is predeceased by her daughter, Renee in 1983. She is survived by her beloved husband, Dennis Poulos; her loving daughter, Denise King and her husband, Joseph; her dear granddaughters, Renee and Denise King; her brothers, Arthur Van Horn and his wife Linda and George Hanna and his wife, Barbara, and by many nieces and nephews.

A funeral service was held in the Nazare Memorial Home, Inc., 403 Ridge Road, Lyndhurst, followed by entombment in Holy Cross Chapel Mausoleum, North Arlington. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Greater New Jersey Chapter of Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, 2 University Plaza, Suite 312, Hackensack, NJ 07601 or Vitas Hospice, 70 S. Orange Ave., Livingston, N.J., 07039

Please visit us at www.nazarefuneralhome.com.

Catherine A. Riposta

Catherine A. Riposta (nee Aruscavage) died on Jan. 21 in Columbus Hospital in Newark. She was 82. Born in Duryea, Pa., she lived most of her life in Kearny.

Arrangements are by the Armitage and Wiggins Funeral Home, 596 Belgrove Dr., Kearny. A funeral Mass will be held Wednesday, Jan. 25, at 11 a.m. in Our Lady of Sorrows Church, Kearny. Interment will be in Holy Cross Cemetery.

Catherine is the wife of the late Louis Riposta. She is survived by her daughter Dawn Callahan, her brother Philip Aruscavage, along with her nieces and nephews Joyce Delguercio and Nancy Chippendale and Nicholas and Louis Callahan.

In lieu of flowers kindly consider a donation to the Diabetes Association. To leave online condolence, please visit www.armitagewiggins.com.

Bertha Skiptunis

Bertha (Rock) Skiptunis, 85, died on Jan. 19 at her home in Kearny.

Arrangements were by the Thiele-Reid Family Funeral Home, 585 Belgrove Drive, Kearny. A funeral liturgy was offered in Our Lady of Sorrows Church, Kearny, followed by interment in Holy Cross Cemetery, North Arlington. Condolences and memories may be shared at www.thiele-reid.com.

Bertha was born in Center Township, Pa. She has lived in Kearny since 1981.

She was employed as a clerk at Engelhard Industries in Newark for many years.

Ms. Skiptunis is survived by her loving siblings Genevieve Stutz, Alice Fenton, Sophie Kurpell, Estelle Sofko , Edward Rock and many nieces and nephews.

She was predeceased by her husband Leo and sisters Mary Dewey and Virginia Borowski and brother Stanley Rock.

Michael J. Tortorello

Michael J. Tortorello, died on Jan. 16 in the Hackensack Hospice. He was 40.

Born in Belleville, he lived in Kearny before moving to Lyndhurst 12 years ago.

Arrangements were by the Armitage and Wiggins Funeral Home, 596 Belgrove Drive, Kearny. A funeral Mass was held in St. Stephen’s Church, Kearny. Interment was in Holy Cross Cemetery, North Arlington.

Mike was a firefighter in the Town of Kearny and was a member of the Harrison Elks and Knights of Columbus.

He is survived by his wife Sharon (nee Gilmore); his father Michael; his children Michael, Alexa and Gina and his brother Mark and sister Carly. His mother, Carol, died only two years ago.

In lieu of flowers, kindly make a donation to Relay for Life c/o the funeral home.

 

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