Ellen "Helen" Iannone

Helen Maffei Iannone passed away after a long, effervescent life. She was the youngest of 11 children and was always referred to as "the baby" throughout her life no matter her age. She was beautiful on the outside but even more so on the inside. She was soft spoken, super sweet and stronger than she put on. She married Buddy Iannone, to whom she was married for 65 years. He was a star in his own right as a performer and trumpet player, and she was happy to be by his side—she didn’t need the spotlight—she was his caretaker, his partner and she was proud to be so.

Everyone thinks their grandma’s cooking is the best. Her grandkids really believe it. Meatballs and gravy, linguine with clams, beans and macaroni—nothing tasted quite like hers and it was a craft and talent that she may have not admitted. She often made big batches and froze them for each grandkid, labeling the containers with our names. To our surprise, in the days after she passed, we found our last frozen gravy in her freezer. This was just one of the many ways she showed her love to us. She might have been soft spoken but she was grand to us all. We’ll miss her nature, her pasta, and her presence at the dinner table. We hope she is reunited with her Buddy, her Jimmy and all those she loved and who loved her—and we hope she’s cooking something beautiful for them all.

A memorial gathering for Helen will be held on Thursday, April 3rd at Quinn-Hopping Funeral Home, 145 E. Mt. Pleasant Avenue, Livingston, NJ 07039 from 12:00 p.m. - 3:00 -p.m.