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Submitted: 2/8/21 • Approved: 2/8/21 • Last Updated: 4/12/23 • R33156-G33151-S3
OBITUARY
Ida Barilla
MARCH 30, 1927 – APRIL 25, 2020
Ida Barilla was born at home on Madison St. in Newark, NJ on March 30, 1927, the third of 9 siblings. Her mother took her to Portugal when she was about 10 and she lived there with her grandparents, brother, Victor, and sisters, Anna and Celina until around 1941 when she returned to America. While in Portugal she learned to sew and became a talented seamstress.
During WWII she was a real Rosie the Riveter at Grumman Aircraft and Aero Trades Manufacturing, a supplier to Grumman and Republic Aviation, among others. She was only about 16 and had three welding licenses, including one for aluminum. The owner of Aero Trades would introduce her to visiting company reps and government procurement people as “my best welder”. She even welded the Aero Trades building sign which may be the one still on their Mineola, NY building.
After the war when the returning servicemen reclaimed most of the few defense jobs still available she became a seamstress sewing religious vestments as well as a private seamstress. She made the wedding dresses for her sister Anna and sister-in-law Rosemarie. Later she and her husband, Sal Barilla, bought the beautiful and classic art deco movie theater in Waterbury, CT. It featured a massive pipe organ and even a grand piano in the mezzanine. Unfortunately they could not get first run movies and revenues deteriorated to the point that they were forced to close the theater.
Childless herself, she was god mother to many nieces, nephews and cousins once removed and was very involved and loving in their upbringing. Ida was an excellent cook and had a wide-ranging repertoire of Portuguese and Italian dishes as well as American. She became proficient in Italian while married to Sal so that she could converse with Sal’s Italian-only mother and other relatives. After her divorce from Sal, Ida’s mother and special needs sister, Celina, came to live with her and they all moved to Cape Coral where Ida was an exceptional and loving care-giver. She and her older sister, Alice Belo, moved to Gulf Coast Village in 2012 and enjoyed eight wonderful years together until Alice’s death just seven weeks before Ida’s.
Her 1947 marriage to Frank Manso ended on his death in 1960 and her marriage to Sal Barilla ended in divorce. She is survived by her siblings, Mary Lou Price (Harvey), and Henry (Hank) Cruz; sister-in-law Maria Cruz; and 34 nieces and nephews along with their spouses and their numerous children. Her siblings Alice, Victor, Celina, Tony, Anna and Gloria predecease her. Cousins, second cousins, and cousins once or twice removed are too numerous to mention but she loved them all and was loved in return. Her nieces, Laura Peterson Perez and Bernadette Cruz Parilla provided much love, support, patience and help in Ida’s final years and months.
Contributed on 2/8/21
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Record #: 33156