Lucia Ilaria, 87, of Livingston, passed away peacefully at home on Tuesday, June 2, 2020.
A resident of Livingston for over 60 years, Lucia is survived by her children Mike, Paul, and Deborah; her brother, Joseph Roselli; her grandchildren, Michael, Jr., Derek and his wife, Vanessa, Anthony, Francesca, Nicole, and Elizabeth; her nieces, Helen and Donna; her nephews, Patrick, Richard, and Robert Roselli; and six great-grandchildren. She was predeceased by her son, Peter; her husband, Gabriel; her mother, Ida; her father, Patsy; and her brothers, Richard, Ralph and Patsy Jr. Born in Newark on November 8,
Born in Newark on November 8, 1932, Lucia was a great athlete and a well-educated young woman. She was hitting home runs long before her brother Joe, who went on to play baseball professionally for the Giants Farm Club. The family’s athletic genes clearly passed down to her youngest grandson, Michael. Lucia was a talented hairdresser, who
Lucia was a talented hairdresser, who trained to run her own salon, but she changed her path when she and Gabriel moved their young family in 1958 to her parents’ horse farm on Northfield Road in Livingston, a well-known landmark in town. Lucia decided to stay home and raise her family in Livingston. The Roselli family, well-established in town, owned and operated Roselli Paving Company as well as the horse farm, which was started when her father bought a horse for $25 for her youngest brother, Richie.
Lucia’s brother, Richard Roselli, went on to start DARE, the groundbreaking and successful drug rehab program that saved hundreds of lives in the 1960s and ’70s. Several years after Richard established DARE, Lucia was instrumental establishing vital DARE citizen groups, and brother Joe Roselli designed and implemented health, exercise and sports programs at DARE. They worked hand-in-hand with their brother, Richard, to build on the success of DARE. Lucia also studied and taught Silva Mind Control, which was integrated as a course to coincide with treatment in the DARE program.
Lucia authored a book, He Has Touched Our Lives, about the life of the Rev. Al Gorayeb, priest of St. Ann’s Melkite Catholic Church in Paterson. In later years, she went on to work with her youngest son, Mike, at the business he started, Ilaria Granite in Orange
In retirement, Lucia didn’t slow down. She volunteered for the Livingston Chapter of AARP, served for over 10 years as Chairperson planning and organizing many enjoyable trips for ...
