John J. Donnarumma

John was born in Philadelphia, PA on July 19, 1959, a son of the late Catherine "Cass" (Helmar) and Sebastian "Bud" Donnarumma. John was a very caring person, and took pride in living in the FISHTOWN section of Phila. John made many friends, and continued to visit friends in Philadelphia up until his hospitalization.
John graduated from Northeast Catholic High School in 1977. After spending some time in construction, John decided that he wanted to be a nurse. So he attended Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science, as a Biology Major with a minor in Microbiology. After that, John then attended Hahneman Medical School for nursing. After graduating in 1987 as 1 of 2 male nurses, John took a position at UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA.
John and Laura were married in NJ in 1990. At that time, John moved to Laurence Harbor, NJ (and eventually to Matawan, NJ). John then took a job as a RN of Psychiatric Nursing at Hoboken University Medical Center(HUMC). John was a communicant of St. Lawrence RC Church, in Laurence Harbor, NJ. 08879. John was eventually certified as a PSYCHIATRIC NURSE. John loved his vocation so much, that he remained at HUMC for 40 years, retiring just recently. John and Laura also just celebrated their 35th wedding anniversary 2 weeks ago.
His nickname was Donut because he used to eat a whole box!
John was a rabid PHILADELPHIA Eagles(NFL) fan his entire life. He was THRILLED to see his team win TWO Superbowls, and was confident that they would win again this season. John tried to wear some article of EAGLES GREEN clothing every day for luck.
John was the consumate animal lover. While they were married, John and Laura had a menagerie. John had three dogs at the time of his illness, who visited whenever John was up for it. Cody, Ozzie, and Sasha are going to miss their "daddy" very much.
John was also a seasoned world traveler. He had visited such exotic destinations as Tahiti, Peru, Columbia, Greece, Turkey, China, Japan to name a few. John was extremely interested in history, and always visited museums and historical sites, to better understand cultures and world politics. John took great pleasure in visiting ruins; whether climbing the Great Wall of China, visiting the temples of Egypt, touring beaches at Normandy, seeing the remnants of the ARIZONA at Pearl Harbor, John was thrilled to touch a piece of history. John always said that if he couldn't be a nurse, he would have been a history professor.
John also loved to decorate his house in Matawan, NJ for all the holidays. He took great pride in building a life-size coffin for his ghoul in his Halloween Extravaganza. (John just loved a good zombie!) He loved to decorate his house for Christmas, just like Clark Griswold. John's goal was to have so many lights, you could see his house from outer space.
John was really a very special person, putting others needs before his own. John oftentimes helped family or neighbors, even though he was in a great deal of pain himself. John will be sorely missed by all.
John is predeceased by his parents and a sister Marie Rones. He is survived by his loving wife Laura, cherished brothers James (and wife Sara) and Michael (and wife Peggy), Sister in law Susan ( and husband Greg), father in law Joseph, and many extended family and friends.
A visitation will be held on Wednesday November 5, 2025 from 4:00 PM - 8:00 PM at Day Funeral Home located at 361 Maple Pl. Keyport, NJ 07735. A funeral mass will be offered on Thursday 10:00 AM at St. Laurence Church in Laurence Harbor, NJ. To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of John, please visit our floral store.