Gloria Ciampi, 99, of Howell, formerly of Middletown and South Orange, passed away Sept. 8. Gloria was born in Newark to Frank and Carmela (Villanova) Grippo. She was a 1940 graduate of West Side High School in Newark. Gloria then pursued her education, attending St. Michael’s Nursing School in Newark and earning her RN certification. Before marriage, Gloria worked as a supervisor in various clinics at St. Michael’s Hospital in Newark.
In 1953, she met her husband, Enrico, in Italy and married him in Pompeii. She raised her family in South Orange, where she was an active member of the Ladies Auxiliary of St. James Hospital, Newark, and a member of the rosary altar society of Sacred Heart RC Church in Vailsburg. After the death of her husband in 1977, Gloria went to work for NYSA-ILA Medical Center in Newark for 10 years.
In her younger years, Gloria traveled to Lourdes, France, Fatima, Portugal, as well as a pilgrimage in 1988 to Medjugorje, Yugoslavia, all driven by her devotion to the Blessed Mother.
Upon retirement, she moved to Shady Oaks in Middletown where she was one of the original owners. In her final years, she was a resident at Brandywine Living in Howell. She appreciated the loving care and compassion that was provided to her by the staff at Brandywine.
Gloria cherished the many close friendships she fostered everywhere she lived, including South Orange, Shady Oaks and Brandywine.
Gloria was predeceased by her parents and her husband, Dr. Enrico Ciampi, as well as her son, Rosario Ciampi and granddaughter, Catherine Theresa Ciampi.
She is survived by her children: Dr. Frank Ciampi and wife Kathryn of Woodbridge, Virginia, Dr. Peter Ciampi and wife Dr. Rossana Ciampi of Brielle, and Rosa Maria Garcia and husband Lou of Freehold; sister Doris Houlihan Woolfenden and her husband Donald of Monmouth Beach; grandchildren: Gabriella (Ciampi) Hinz and husband Stephen Hinz, Briana Ciampi and fiancé Matthew Murakami, Joseph Ciampi, Jennifer and Mary Ciampi, and Jessica and Nicholas Garcia; as well as her great-grandson Liam Hinz.
All services were private due to COVID-19.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made in Gloria’s name to the charity of your choice.
Please visit Gloria’s memorial website available at johnedayfuneralhome.com.
The article originally appeared in the September 17 – 23, 2020 print edition of The Two River Times.
