05/19/2026
On Thursday May 14, 2026 my Petey was laid to rest. It was a beautiful day. The rain stopped and the sun popped out just before his service. So many family and friends came from as far away as California (Granddaughter Kenzie Edwards and Daughter Deidra Holden Detamore), Arizona (Daughter Renee Menne, son-in-law Michael Menne, Granddaughters Morgan Taylor and Jordan Taylor) and upstate New York (Grandson Tyler Edwards, Son-in-law Mark Edwards, Daughter-in-law Olga Edwards and Granddaughter Tamara Edwards) and Pennsylvania (awesome friends Bernie Leotilo Heffelfinger, Blanche Shenosky and Matthew Leotilo). It was overwhelming. I could feel the love.
It was a military service. The folding of the flag. The gun salute. Taps. The presenting of the flag. The US Marines were magnificent. So handsome in their dress blues. So precise. That slow salute. And so compassionate when he presented the flag to me.
But most of all, I want to thank Rone Funeral Service , Lori Rone-McLaughlin , Nelson Albano, and especially Mike DeStefano for their friendship, professionalism, compassion and tolerance of my so many questions. Mike officiated the service. It was so beautiful, so touching and Mike knew Pete so well. The passages were perfect. They are truly the best of the best.
How I'm going to navigate this life without Pete by my side is a question I can't answer right now. I'm sure he'll be guiding me. In the meantime, what would I do without my niece Annette Mesiano Cerione, and my besties Marian Applebaum, Elizabeth A. Hurley and her husband Bill, and most especially my brother Rudy and sis-in-law Cindy Rossi who have been by my side since the first minutes. Thank you just doesn't seem enough. They know my heart though. And that I love them so very much.
