Obituary: Grace R. Mahon, 85, Raised 11 Children in Long Branch

Grace Regina (Gibbons) Mahon, 85, of Tinton Falls, passed away peacefully at home on Thursday, April 11, 2013 surrounded by her family. She was born and raised in Newark, NJ. The daughter of the late James Nelson Gibbons and the late Catherine Cunningham Gibbons, she graduated from Good Counsel High School and became a Registered Nurse after graduating from Saint James Nursing School in 1947. She married Joseph R. Mahon in 1950 and moved to the Jersey Shore and over the next thirteen years had eleven children. While raising her children in Long Branch, Grace did private duty nursing, taught CCD classes at Our Lady Star of the Sea Church; and finished her nursing career in the office of Doctor John Stockfish.

She was a former member and past president of the Ladies Auxilary of the Eatontown Elks; former member of the Long Branch Seniors, SCAN, and is a member of the Tinton Falls Senior Club.

She loved traveling to Atlantic City with her husband, Joe, the Elks Convention trip to Hawaii and New Orleans, her trip to Ireland and Italy and cruises with family. But what brought her the greatest joys were the family parties, weddings, and the gatherings at Thanksgiving with her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.Grace was predeceased by her husband of 38 years, Joseph Rogers Mahon; granddaughter, Daniela Grace Bongarzone; stepmother, Sarah Kenahan Gibbons; sisters, Catherine Donaldson and Sister Gertrude Gibbons SJS; and son-in-law, Dominick Calabrese Jr. Surviving are her 9 daughters & 2 sons and their spouses, Mary & Anthony Sciarrillo, Theresa Calabrese, Patricia & Joseph Bauer, Catherine & Glenn Mayer, Joanne & Carl Van Ness, Jeanette & Steven Krone, Joseph Jr. & Vonnie Mahon, Grace & Anthony Bongarzone, Michael & Allison Mahon, Christina & Edward Ellam, and Aileen & Albert Mentel; her beloved 30 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren, 1 step grandchild and 1 step great-grandchild. She is also survived by sisters-in-law, Gertrude Hughes, Ann Walsh, and many cousins, nieces, and nephews.

Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. Monday, April 15 and from 9 to 10 a.m. Tuesday, April 16 from the Bongarzone Funeral Home, 2400 Shafto Road, Tinton Falls. A funeral Mass will be held at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday from Church of Saint Dorothea, Eatontown. Interment will follow at Mount Carmel Cemetery in West Long Branch. In lieu of flowers, donations in her memory can be made to the Tinton Falls Cure, P.O. Box 134, Tinton Falls, NJ 07724 or Oceanport Cares (For Hurricane Sandy), 43 Algonquin Ave., Oceanport, NJ 07757. For online condolences, please visit Grace's memorial website at www.bongarzonefuneral home.com.