Obituary of Roseline Chidiac

Roseline Chidiac, 95, of Totowa, passed away peacefully on December 22nd, 2019 surrounded by her family. Rose was born in Aleppo, Syria on January 1, 1924 to the late Gofril and Olga (Tomaz) Mardelli. She was the cherished sister of Joseph Mardelli and his wife Mona and was predeceased by her sisters, Angela Mardelli, Josephine (Mardelli) Gabriel, and her brother, Albert Mardelli. She was the beloved "Emaimeh" and “Taunte” (Aunt in Syrian) to Noel Newhart and her husband Mark, Gabriel Mardelli, Caroline Mardelli and Claudette Timmons and her husband Gene and a great-aunt to Alexander, Andrew, Peter and Victoria Rose. She was a loving homemaker to her family and late husband and veteran, Jack Chidiac. Rose and Jack married in Syria in 1947 and migrated to the United States to begin their new life together in Miami, Florida, where they owned and ran a grocery store for 5 years. She was proud of the success of their business, very much enjoyed taking care of the store, talking to the customers and always making them feel welcome. In 1953, they relocated to Paterson, NJ where she became very involved as a role model for the Syrian community and later helped bring her mother and siblings from Syria to NJ as well, all becoming long time residents of Paterson. In 1975, Jack passed away and despite living many years without him, Rose stayed strong and independent and invited others into her home to ease her loneliness. One of Rose's sources of joy was cooking. She donated many hours of her time to Saint Ann’s Church to prepare for parties and special events by cooking Syrian food, appetizers and pastries for the church community. Her specialties were endless, from Middle Eastern cuisine to also American style ribs or southern style fried fish! Everything was always made with passion resulting in a perfect meal every time. Rose also volunteered regularly at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Wayne spending time with sick children feeding them, making them laugh, and working on special crafts together. She absolutely loved being around children and it was a very special time for her. Rose could sew almost anything. She followed patterns and loved creating her own designs. She enjoyed sewing so much that she continued practicing her hobby during her years residing at St. Joseph’s Home for the Elderly, Little Sisters of the Poor where she rested for her final three years of life and where she took her last breath with her nieces, Noel, Caroline, Claudette and her husband, Gene and their daughter, Victoria Rose by her side. She always did things to make everyone feel loved and comfortable and cared for. One of the sweetest and delicate memories her niece, Claudette has of them is packing up a picnic basket and walking across the street from Rose’s house to Pennington Park for lunch. They even picked berries while at the park, which made it even more of a treat. Her niece, Caroline, has the fondest memories of her Taunt Rose and their close relationship. She described it as being a daughter to her and expressed that she will always have a very special place in our hearts, forever missed and remembered as a strong and legendary Syrian woman. Visitation and a Funeral Mass will be held Friday, December 27th, 2019 at St. Ann's Melkite Catholic Church, 802 Rifle Camp Rd., Woodland Park, NJ. Visitation is from 9:00-10:30am with the Funeral Mass beginning at 10:30am. Burial will follow at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Totowa. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be sent to St. Joseph's Home for the Elderly, Little Sisters of the Poor, 140 Shepherd Lane, Totowa, NJ 07512.