Anthony John Serratore

Anthony J. Serratore of Marlton, NJ passed away on January 22, 2024 at age 96. Tony was born in Ambler, PA, one of 13 children of Italian immigrants, Pietro and Josephine Serratore (Pete, Joe, Frank, Anne, Mary, Viola, Jeannette, Virginia, Betty, Catherine, and two siblings who died in infancy). Due to the early death of his mother, and his father's inability to care for all of his children, Tony and his sister Catherine spent seven bleak years in an orphanage. But Tony was not a person to dwell on hardships or prone to self-pity. He always moved forward in life, which included joining the Navy at age 17 during World War II. One day while on leave in Philadelphia, the handsome sailor met a pretty girl with blue eyes named Beatrice. Tony had a sly sense of humor and an extroverted personality. He relied on both to capture Bea's attention that day and ask her on a date. Tony and Bea married when she was 18 and he was 20. After a few years of marriage, they were thrilled to welcome the birth of a son, Tony, followed by the birth of a daughter, Chris. The nuclear family grew up together in a three-bedroom rancher in Somerdale, NJ at a time when there was a real sense of community in the neighborhood. Tony often reminisced fondly about that period of his life, including his two jobs. He worked for 35 years as a machinist at Metal Edge Industries in Barrington, NJ, where he also served as a union president. Despite only having an 8th grade education, he often managed to out-maneuver the administrators during negotiations. When Metal Edge went out of business, he got a job working for the Atlantic City Expressway as a foreman, a job he loved. No matter what he encountered in life, there were constants that brought Tony pleasure. He particularly liked golfing, vacationing at the Jersey shore with his family, being a Philadelphia Eagles and Phillies fan, and working on his yard. He had a talent for landscaping and his lawn was always one of the greenest in the neighborhood, which earned him the nickname "lawn doctor". Tony's greatest joy in life, however, derived from choosing the right woman to marry. He deeply loved Bea, and they were inseparable for 76 years.