BORN

1933

DIED

2020

FUNERAL HOME

Richard D. Cole Funeral Home Inc.

328 Beaver St

Sewickley, Pennsylvania

June Melodia Obituary

June Melodia, 86, of Sewickley, passed peacefully in her sleep Friday, Jan. 3, 2020. She had enjoyed having her hair done and greeting friends in the Village earlier that day before walking back at her usual brisk clip to the apartment that she shared with her granddaughter, Kate. Her recent inability to remember names or sometimes nouns more generally did not inhibit her sociability. The prior two weeks had been filled with family and friends, including a gathering of nearly 40 nieces, nephews, children and grandchildren. She had, in short, just entered her tenth decade of life with her optimism and serenity intact. Until she woke no more, she quite literally started each day laughing. June was born Dec. 3, 1933, to George and Sabina Spurrier, of Pittsburgh's North Side. She was an identical twin with her sister, Jean (Dudra of Ben Avon), who survives her. Their father drove trucks for a living, loved baseball and "the twins", and their mother was the head dietician for Presbyterian Hospital in Oakland. June was a straight "A" student at Annunciation High School, but her real passion was attending "the dances", the nearly nightly live music jitterbug raves that dominated the social lives of Catholic city kids throughout the 1940s and early 1950s. It was in those dance halls that she met the love of her life, Mario Melodia, a.k.a., "Smooth" or "Sonny", although family lore has it that they met at Isaly's with Mario behind the counter and the twins stealing pickles out of the barrel. They married May 3, 1952, and were rarely apart for the next 55 years until Mario's death in 2008. June supported and made possible the national performing and teaching career of Mario. They moved from New York to Colorado and back to Pittsburgh as he established himself as a sought-after choreographer and dance teacher, through various iterations of his studios in East Liberty, Oakland, Squirrel Hill and Downtown, and through his long associations with Kenley Players in Ohio and Sewickley Academy. At each stop, June was a quiet but much beloved presence, a stable hub around which the crazy artistic spokes turned. June and Mario settled in Pittsburgh to start and raise a family, first on Marshall Avenue on the North Side and then in the North Hills and for precisely half a century in Sewickley. June lost a daughter, Christine, but had three children who survive her, Mark (married to Dianne, now of New York City), Stacey (now Anastasia, of Newport, R.I., married to Wes Reilly) and Craig (married to Kendra Carter, now of Chicago). June loved dearly her six grandchildren, Kate, Olivia, Parker, Charles, Van and Chelsea. She was devoted to her nuclear family and always elevated its protection above all else. While she had occasion to travel, experience hit shows and meet an endless parade of celebrities, she was always happiest in and most impressed by ordinary day-to-day life with her children, grandchildren, co-workers and friends. June was a member of the Edgeworth Club for 50 years. Once her children had grown, June worked as the receptionist, office manager and all-around mother at the Verland Foundation in Ohio Township for three decades, creating a new family of co-workers and residents. Contributions in June's honor can be made to the Verland Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization, at www.verland.org.
We will gather for a memorial service and luncheon at 11:30 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 25, 2020, at the Edgeworth Club. All family and friends are welcome at this celebration of her life, a party that June would have loved. Arrangements are by the COLE FUNERAL HOME, Sewickley.

Published by Sewickley Herald from Jan. 7 to Jan. 16, 2020.
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Memories and Condolences
for June Melodia

Sponsored by Richard D. Cole Funeral Home Inc..

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6 Entries

June was the quiet strength behind Mario. She always had a smile and always had time to listen. I spent many years as a dance student of Mario , who was the most important influence in my life growing up. Under his guidance I became a professional dancer and have had an extraordinary life as a consequence. They shared our happiness at our wedding in 1978. I will be forever grateful that she and Mario crossed my path.

Nancy Josephson-Lahoussine

Student

May 4, 2020

Mrs. Melodia was the absolute best. She was incredibly kind and supportive, and her sense of humor was contagious. Going over to the Melodia's house in Osborne was always so much fun, and Mrs. Melodia was like a second Mom to me and countless others. All of the productions like "The Wizard of Oz"....Mrs. Melodia put a lot of time and effort in behind the scenes. So many other great memories too. "In the Navy" and Mark on AM Pittsburgh, Mutsy the dog, Craig spiking his hair with toothpaste and the legendary Melodia haunted house on many Halloweens. Craig & Kendra, Anastasia, Mark and your families, please accept sincere condolences from my wife, Celeste, and me. We are sorry that we could not be there for the memorial service. I wish my son, Silas (4), would have known your parents. He will hear many stories about the Melodias and the positive impact they had on so many people. Rest in Peace, Mrs. Melodia. You will be missed.

TOM KOPF

Friend

January 27, 2020

I want to thank all of my dear friend June's family for having the most tribute to her on Sat. All the family stories, I could relate to having been told them by June. She was a true mother to all of us. When I returned to Verland after my first Cancer and first round of chemo, June knew how sick I was all the time and she would check on me constantly. Every morning she would put a package on butter mints on my desk. She knew they were my favorite candy and they would help my stomach. Oh yes that is what my mom would have don had she been alive. June knew I needed that mother touch, and she took that role with me. June, I would never made it through that time if it wasn't for your love. All the great memories I have of you, Jill, Irene and myself I will cherish every day of my life. The photo of the 4 of us will remain on my fridge where it has been for 5 years. Rest In Peace dear friend and be happy now in the arms of Mario who has been waiting for you. I love you and I am sorry I have been too sick to see you this past year. I will miss you dear friend. Stacy please call me. 3 means I love you.

January 27, 2020

June was the epitome of style and grace....we used to tease her that she only worked at Verland to pay her dry cleaning bill! A better, truer, more sincere friend you could not ask for as she always had a smile and sympathetic ear to lend at any time. Four of us gals worked closely together for many years, and we would frequently go out for dinner after work lingering several hours after the bill had been paid. We laughed so much and shared nearly every aspect of our lives....family life, life outside of our work, job frustrations, but most important our kids and their accomplishments, mishaps and so many funny stories of their growing up years. Such sweet memories I have of those times we spent together. I, too, have the picture of the four of us on my fridge where it will remain as a reminder of my dear friend June and how special those friendships were so long ago. I moved to California 15 years ago, but always made a point to let Patty know I would be back in the Burgh for a visit, and she would arrange for us four to get together again. One time, two weren't available, but June made sure to meet my husband and me for dinner anyhow before we had to return. It was a very special evening for us. Mario has been waiting patiently for you, so now you're back in his arms dancing your way through Heaven. Jill & Rich Gram

Jill Gram

January 14, 2020

I was so deeply saddened to hear of June's passing. I worked for 9 years at Verlaine with June. We had a dinner group of 7 of we ladies who went out to dinner. Oh how we laughed. Even after many of us left Verlaine, we still got together. June treated me as a daughter and that is how it felt. She helped me so much after my Cancer. She was so caring as I would go to work while on chemotherapy. I could not have done it without her. I have a picture of the 4 dearest friends on my fridge. It has been there for years. It will always stay. June loved her family with all her heart. It was my pleasure to babysit Stacy's children one summer. June told me that I was the only one she would trust to care for her family. June, I will miss you so much but as my husband Dave said she is dancing in heaven with Mario. Rest In Peace my dear, dear, sweet June. We love you. 3. Patty and Dave Roth.

January 11, 2020

Dear Mark: I was saddened to read of your loss. Please accept my condolences. - Jeff Pollock, Esq. (Sq. Hill)

January 9, 2020

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Memorial service

11:30 a.m.

Edgeworth Club

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Richard D. Cole Funeral Home Inc.

328 Beaver St, Sewickley, PA 15143

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