Rita Moore Serdakowski

I learned so VERY many things from Rita <3 She and Stanley have been family to us since long before I was born. They were my parents' youth leaders at Walnut St Baptist. As a girl, Mom and Dad (Jimmy and Nancy) took us to Gladstone often to visit. They treated us like we were their children. They opened our very first passbook savings accounts with $10 as little children, and Stanley would take us into Gladstone-Peapack bank every time we had birthday money to deposit, and taught us the joy of putting up for a rainy day, and getting that "stamp" in our savings passbook :) Rita taught me my love of gardening and quilting, and my FAVORITE, rhubarb pie. We wrote to each other several times a year after I moved away thirty years ago. Kelly was sweet enough to write me and let me know that the rhubarb roots Rita wanted to share with me will be there waiting. <3 Every time I make a quilt, plant something, or bake a rhubarb pie, or drive on a gravel driveway (my FAVORITE sound when we would go visit having grown up in the city), or when I have blackberries (she used to let us go eat berries right off the vines), I smile and remember a million and one occasions when she shared so much of herself with all of us. She loved deeply, generously, and has always BEEN loved deeply. My heart is so sad. I will miss her letters, but I am so overjoyed she is reunited with her Stanley and in the presence of our Jesus. Thank you Kelly for the beautiful letter. You are so thoughtful. I will write. My deepest condolences to Joan and all of her nieces and nephews that she always spoke of with such love and joy.

As a youth leader at Walnut Baptist Church. Her angel food cake and than Rita and Stanley becoming God parents to our son Steven whom they named.