Eleanor Calangelo

Eleanor LaBella Calangelo, 101, of Manchester, NJ, died Sunday, February 15, 2026 at Community Medical Center, Toms River. Born in New York City on August 29, 1924, she witnessed the highs and lows of more than a century of life. She married Peter Calangelo in 1947, and they enjoyed many years of happiness until his death in 2007. They often resided near Eleanor's beloved siblings, beginning their married life in Manhattan, then moving to Washington Heights, Brooklyn, Fresh Meadows, and finally retiring to Leisure Village Manchester, NJ in 1982. She was an active member of the tennis club and enjoyed a long and varied social life there, living independently until her death.

Eleanor was an executive at Irving Trust until her retirement in 1984. She enjoyed working in the Wall Street area and was always delighted to share stories of her long career as a trailblazing female accountant. But what she truly loved was sharing her lust for life with her beloved family. She is predeceased by her siblings Rose DiGiacomo, Marie LaBella, Ralph LaBella, Ann Orefice, and Rita Sessa, whom she cherished. She is survived by her adoring nieces and nephews, Denise Sessa-Geromanos (Thomas); Nicole Sessa, John Orefice (Jeanne); Janice Orefice Dehn (Thomas); Christopher Orefice (Jeannine); Stuart Orefice; Thea Pace (Michael) who enjoyed hours in her company, marveled at her energy, and savored her presence at all family celebrations, where she was always the life of the party. She was especially grateful for the care and assistance provided by Nicole, Denise and Tommy, and Stuart the past few years.

She will be greatly missed by her great-nieces and nephews, Jonathan Geromanos (Kayla and great-great nephew Julian); Ben Wunderlich (Blair and great-great nieces Gaines and Eleanor); Joanna Clough (Evan and great-great nieces Hazel and Carter); Christopher Dehn, Nicholas Dehn, Dominique Orefice, Peter Orefice, Christopher Pace, Amanda Pace Chingas (Nick and great-great nephew James), Alexander Pace, and Samuel Pace who were able to enjoy her company and her generosity.

To know Eleanor was to love her laugh, her stories, her outrageous ability to perform for any camera, her incredible sense of style, her passion for tennis (and especially Roger Federer!), her coiffed hair and perfectly manicured nails, and her devotion to those she loved. She will be sorely missed.

Visitation will be held Friday from 4:00 - 8:00 PM at Oliverie Funeral Home, Manchester. Entombment will take place at 11:00 AM Saturday at St. Catherine's Cemetery, Sea Girt. In lieu of flowers please send donations to the American Heart Association or the ustafoundation.com. musicares.org, a charity supported by a favorite comedian, Craig Ferguson.