HOLTZHAUSER — With great sadness, Teresa Jane Holtzhauser (nee Datz) passed away on Sept. 6, at the age of 96. She was predeceased by her loving husband, Thomas E. Holtzhauser.
Teresa is survived by her daughter, Jane, and son, Tom. She leaves behind her daughter-in-law, Stacey and her son-in-law, Mark; five grandchildren, Molly (Anthony), Joe (Chelsea), Melissa (David), Tom, and Vikki; seven great-grandchildren whom she loved dearly and one loyal dog who was always by her side. She is also survived by a large extended family of nieces and nephews, who loved her, and she them.
She married Tom in 1954, quit her job with the gas company and took to a life of farming and providing for her family’s every need.
Teresa loved the Phillies and met many friends as a volunteer at Veteran’s Stadium and CBP. When she wasn’t working the giveaways, she attended the games, watching from her beloved section 116. When the Phillies took to the road, she traveled with the Phillie Phantastics to see them, going to over 20 ballparks and taking her grandchildren along on many of those trips.
She also enjoyed the times she spent in Ocean City, NJ every summer with her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
She was designated a lifetime member of The Women’s Club of Mullica Hill after 50 years of service and was a member of the Historical Society of Mullica Hill. She lived her entire life in Mullica Hill, witnessing many changes in the farming community that she was a part of, being the matriarch of Holtzhauser Farms.
After having been burned in a fire in her twenties, she received life-saving blood donations, then faithfully gave blood as often as she could, donating over four gallons.
She will be deeply missed by her family and friends.
Donations may be made to The American Red Cross or St. Labre Indian School of Ashland, Montana. Memories & condolences can be shared at www.smithfhmantua.com.
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CALI — Gisela M. Cali, born January 20, 1944, 81 years young, of Swedesboro. Gisela was born near Kaiserslautern, Germany. She immigrated to the United States at 10 years old with her mother, Elizabeth Bowen and sister, Sylvia. She spent the rest of her life living in New Jersey. Her warm nature and sweet demeanor allowed her to work in sales and hospitality to provide for her family.
She was a gentle yet strong, truly beautiful, kind-hearted, hard-working woman, with an endearing giggle and a mischievous grin. Gisela put herself in harms-way in order to help both people and animals on many occasions.
Gisela loved nature. She often sat on her back deck with her husband, Russell, eating breakfast, and listening to the birds sing. She felt deeply connected with the earth, and you could find her in her garden for hours, often from morning until well into early evening.
Gardening brought her both happiness and peace. She loved sharing her knowledge of plants and passed her love to her children. Her floral arrangements rivaled those found at the Philadelphia Flower Show.
She enjoyed simple things. She took car rides with her husband just to be together. They would make a day out of going to the diner and some stores and walking around.
More than anything else, she loved her family. Her love for her family was beyond measure. She always wanted to celebrate her children’s triumphs and help them through disappointments. She fought hard to stay with us until she took her last breath.
Gisela is predeceased by her mother and friend, Elizabeth Bowen. She is survived by her loving husband, Russell Cali, son, William Fleming (Michele), daughter, Monika Gelsomini (Lou), son, Michael Fleming (Tara Pirolli), son, Russell Cali (Kim), and daughter, Cemone Cali Yu (Jason), sister, Sylvia Romero, grandchildren, Nicole, Lou (Ashley), Gianna, Nicholas, Malena, Adrienne, Knox, Christian, Adaline & Rocco and great-grandchildren, Louis, Isabella, Jayden, and Giovanni.
She will be missed until the day we meet again.
Please make a donation in her memory to Animal Welfare Association, 509 Centennial Blvd., Voorhees Township, NJ 08043.
A celebration of her life was held at Daley Life Celebration Studio, Swedesboro.
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DiBELLA — Josephine DiBella, 94. Still waters run deep. Most knew her as a smiling, agreeable woman, but behind her eyes was a contemplative, hard working woman. Josephine was a problem solver.
You’d find her out in the fields well into her 60’s, working as hard as anyone on the family farm. If not in the fields, she’d most likely be cooking for her family; the preparations for her gravy started at 4 a.m. The meals were terrific if for no other reason than most of it had been harvested off their land and canned for use year-round. Staff at Pitman Manor learned of her talents and cut her loose in the kitchen for a few meals.
In truth she was a Philadelphia girl who was a transplant to Woolwich Township. Her formative years found her exploring her artistic side, focusing on fashion. She was as likely to have settled in Manhattan as Woolwich.
She played a little bingo, loved cowboy shows and movies and the sounds of Sam Cooke. Her earlier years found her out with her husband dancing the jitterbug and the occasional polka.
The seminal event of her formative years was her family visiting DiBella Farm and the beautiful girl catching the eye of a handsome boy. Josephine and the late Carmen shared a 66-year marriage blessed by two children, Joseph (Phyllis) and Rose Anne (Robert) Smith and later by four grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.
A life celebration was held at Daley Life Celebration Studio. Donations to United Methodist Communities at Pitman, 535 North Oak Ave, Pitman NJ 08071 will be appreciated. The following is the link to the Methodist Community’s website”: https://share.google/RU9uTF1P6OUg0nkNW
