Philip A. Scardilli

Philip A. Scardilli

Colonia - Philip "Big Phil" Scardilli of Colonia, NJ passed away on April 15, 2020 due to complications of the CoronaVirus. Philip would have been 92 on June 2. Philip, the youngest of 4 boys was born in Newark NJ to Joseph Scardilli & Julia Spaletta.

He lived in Newark until he joined the armed forces in September of 1946, where he served in the Army of Occupation in Japan after WWII. He later married Mary Tangarie in 1951, where they eventually settled in Colonia, NJ where they raised three children.

Philip started his career as a salesman with Prudential Insurance and concentrated on sales for much of his professional life. In 1979, he and Mary opened Accommodating Travel located in Woodbridge, New Jersey. His love of travel, complemented by his affable nature and sales skills, made the travel agency a perfect fit for him. Although Phil and Mary traveled to many countries, beach destinations were unquestionably his favorite.

Philip belonged to several fraternal organizations. He served as past President of the Woodbridge Lions Club, was a 4th degree Knights Of Columbus for the St James Parish in Woodbridge and also belonged to the Iselin VFW and the Woodbridge Elks Club.

Phil's legacy will always be his love and devotion to his cherished family, which meant the world to him. Big Phil was always the life of the party, ready with a joke or a pat on the back. He gained notoriety for his freeform dancing at family functions, which was a mix of shadow boxing and frenetic bouncing about, occasionally in time to the music. Regarding his prowess on the dance floor, some have speculated that Phil may well be one of the first performance artists of the 20th century. When posting their memories of Phil, the terms warm,energetic, funny and very entertaining popped up repeatedly.

Philip is survived by his wife Mary, who until his final days, was referred to as his "Beautiful Bride". He is also survived by his three children; Judith Scardilli and her husband Angelo Paternoster, Philip Scardill and his wife Susan Mirto-Scardilli, and Annette Scardilli-Ritzer and her husband Walter Ritzer.

His beloved grandchildren, Michael Ritzer, his fiance Melanie Mignone, Francesca Ritzer, Gabriel Schein, Juliana Ritzer and Joseph Scardilli.

He is also survived by his brother Joseph Scardilli and was predeceased by his other brothers Frank and Angelo Scardilli. Philip also has countless nieces & nephews, many of whom regarded him as their favorite uncle. The vision of him laughing, joking & dancing will remain with us forever.

Due to the current pandemic crisis, a celebration of his life will be held at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, a donation in his memory can be made to either the Alzheimer's Association (alz.org) or the RWJ Rahway Hospital Emergency Response Fund.