A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Tuesday, Dec. 23, at 11:15 a.m. at St. Philip the Apostle Church in Clifton, N.J., for Dr. Mary T. Mazzarella-De Mayo, a beacon of compassion, love, dedication, and service and the former respect life director of the Paterson Diocese in New Jersey, who died on Dec.18 in Belleville, N.J. She was 92.
Mazzarella-De Mayo was born to the late Domenica (Fanny) and Frank Mazzarella in Newark, N.J., and had five siblings. She studied at the College of St. Elizabeth (now St. Elizabeth University) in the Convent Station neighborhood of Morris Township, N.J. She earned her medical degree from the University Di Roma Sapienza, Fac Di Medicine E Chirurgria in Rome, Italy in 1960. She completed a residency in pediatrics at Newark City Hospital and Babies Hospital of Newark.
From 1965 to 1972, Mazzarella-De Mayo conducted clinical research at Schering Plough. For three decades, she was a pediatrician in Nutley, N.J. She also served as the physician for Belleville Public Schools. From 1970 to 71, Mazzarella-De Mayo was president of the N.J. Medical Women’s Association.
For 20 years, she also served as Respect Life director in the diocesan Evangelization Office, taking her responsibility seriously to demonstrate that all life is sacred from natural conception to natural death.
In that position, Mazzarella-De Mayo provided education and pastoral outreach regarding Respect Life issues, including post abortion healing, euthanasia, capital punishment, and the use of adult stem cells. Her duties also included giving talks to physicians and high school and college students and helping to launch in the diocese “Walking with Moms in Need,” a nationwide, parish-based initiative by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
Mazzarella-De Mayo also served as the medical consultant for the cause for the beatification and canonization of Blessed Miriam Teresa Demjanovich, a former Sister of Charity of St. Elizabeth in Morris Township. Her research and writing to the Vatican in support of a discovered medical cure through Blessed Miriam Teresa’s intercession helped make possible her beatification in 2014. The Sisters of Charity of St. Elizabeth presented her with their Caritas Award that year.
Also, Mazzarella-De Mayo served as a consultant for the sainthood cause of Benedictine Brother Marinus LaRue, a former captain of a U.S. Merchant Marine cargo freighter, whose heroic efforts saved thousands of Korean refugees during the Korean War. Later, he pursued a quieter life as a Benedictine monk at St. Paul’s Abbey in Newton, N.J., in the diocese.
Mazzarella-De Mayo also served as a catechist at St. Philip the Apostle Church in Clifton for 23 years, teaching fifth- to eighth-grade students. Since 1992, she had been a Seton Associate. She volunteered at St. Anne Villa of the Sisters of Charity, where she served as an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion. She was a member of the board of the Clifton Boys and Girls Club.
Those who knew Mazzarella-De Mayo remember her for the warmth and love she extended to everyone she met. Her selfless nature was evident in every aspect of her life, from the way she cared for her patients to the way she guided her family. Her faith was the cornerstone of her existence, guiding her through life’s challenges and triumphs with unwavering conviction.
Mazzarella-De Mayo is survived by her children, Dawn and her husband, Bob Nahrwold, and Richard De Mayo; her grandchildren, Amanda and her husband, John Hart, Melania, Natalia, and Luciano De Mayo; her great-granddaughter, Violet Hart; her sisters, Diana Everard and Pauline Rush; and many nieces, nephews, great-nieces, and great-nephews.
In addition to her parents, Mazzarella-De Mayo was predeceased by her husband, Dr. Joseph M. De Mayo; her two sisters, Doris Debenedetto and Grace Silva; and her brother, Jerry Mazzarella.
Visitation for Mazzarella-De Mayo will be held on Monday, Dec. 22, from 4 to 8 p.m. at Bizub-Quinlan Funeral Home in Clifton, N.J. Funeral services will be held on Tuesday, Dec. 23, at 10:30 a.m. from the funeral home, followed by an 11:15 a.m. Mass of Christian Burial at St. Philip the Apostle Church, also in Clifton. Interment will follow at Holy Cross Cemetery in North Arlington, N.J.
Make memorial donations in Mazzarella-De Mayo’s name to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105.
