Nellie Haley Augustino, 97, passed away on Thursday, March 21, 2019. She lived in Melbourne, Florida for over 50 years and spent the last ten years of her life at the Life Care Center in Palm Bay. She worked as a seamstress and was also a homemaker for most of her life.
Born in Kinderpost, Missouri, she came to Eau Gallie, Florida by way of Orlando, Florida from New London, Connecticut in 1962. She was formerly a member of the Navy Wives Club at Patrick Air Force Base, Florida and a proud charter member of Beacon Baptist Church in Melbourne, Florida.
She is survived by her son; Harold Edward Wood (Laura), daughters; Toni Augustino Salvo Gerkin (Christopher), Terry Augustino Tomaka (Norman), 7 grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her daughter; Norma Jean Romero, one grandson and two great grandsons.
A funeral service will be held on Thursday, March 28, 2019 at 11am at the Life Event Center at Florida Memorial, 5950 US HWY 1, Rockledge, FL 32955. Entombment will be in Florida Memorial Gardens.
Donations in her memory may be sent to: Vitas Healthcare, 4450 W Eau Gallie Blvd, Suite250, Melbourne, FL 32935.
Nellie Augustino June 10, 1921 – March 21, 2019
When one writes an obituary, they are asked to include the traditional name, birth date and date of death. Even though that information is important, what truly defines a person is the information between the birth date and death date. “The Dash”.
The Dash –
Nellie was number eleven out of twelve children. Born in Kinderpost, Missouri in 1921 to Mike and Ella Haley. She married at 18 and had two children (Norma and Harold). After fifteen years, her marriage ended. She stayed in Missouri earning her living as a seamstress. She worked in the clothing district of St. Louis where she worked her way up from piece work for 10 cents a garment to sewing for designers. She was blessed with the gift of sewing. She had her cast iron commercial machine converted to full electricity. Wherever she moved, her machine went with her. At full speed she sewed over 2000 stitches per minute. Growing up we would hear the motor roar. At any hour of the day or night you might find her sewing a dress. It now sits quietly in a corner of my home. It is with honor that it sits just as it was the last time she sewed.
After a few more years, one night she met a handsome Coast Guard chief in full uniform stationed in St. Louis. After watching her a half hour or more, he asked, “Hey red, don’t you ever come up for air?” To which she replied, “Who wants to know?” He found out after fifty-four years of marriage she never came up for air.
Many words can describe Nellie’s life. Most important are those where she made us love & laugh. Whether she was sewing, cooking, or baking (a very different talent than cooking), dressing up to go to a favorite store, restaurant, or event; she always wore her lipstick. Unique, creative, gregarious and outrageous, in her identity, she was a woman of love.
Her kitchen was her official gathering room for all, her big bed was where we met to discuss the broken hearts, boyfriends, and all the major dramas of the day. Her sewing room was her harbor and solace.
She was a charter member of Beacon Baptist Church. Let’s not forget her cinnamon candies that she unwrapped during Pastor Dan’s sermon. She refused to wear hearing aids, so she was oblivious to the noise her wrappers made. He was so kind, he would wait, then look up from the podium and say, “Miss Nell you almost done?” She’d smile and say, “Just about”. She always had hard candy in wrappers on Sunday mornings.
While struggling with what to write about Mother, I thought it best to remember times we can smile about. Mom was not perfect, but who is? Remember, we all do our best with what we have at the time. Mom always did her best.
She was a wife, a mother and an extraordinary grandmother as well as a great grandmother. She was a proper lady whether giving us her opinion or darting out the back door with a six foot super-soaker, spraying the grandkids and their friends. She believed in following the rules when playing games. Her favorite was the marble game, never “letting you win”, as one must learn how to be a gracious loser. As she aged; we found out she had been graciously winning all those years, because she cheated.
She offered advice to all, but rarely took it from anyone. She smiled with her Irish eyes and kept track of our childish pranks with her Irish memory.
He called her “Neller” and she called him “My Feller”.
She was outrageous in her love for my father, almost to a fault. God gave them tender times before he passed. They would sit together side by side, holding hands and smiling. Their eyes and memories filled with secret love and the years only they knew. It was a time of magic for me, as I never saw that kind of love between them growing up. But then perhaps I didn’t look close enough. Before he passed his last words were “Take care of my Nellie” and her last lucid words were “you’ll never know how much I loved him, and he loved me”. And now She is dancing with my father again.
As we talk about the years passed I think of the things that meant the most to her and I can say: God, Family, Traditions, and Loving Memories were at the top of her list.
Please take the time to reflect on your own special memories about your Mother(s). Thank you for sharing this time with us.
* There are cinnamon disks in dishes around the room.
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