Rosalie Mattioni Dear, March 2, 1932 to January 15, 2021, due to complications from Covid-19.

Rosalie was the devoted wife of Paul D. Dear and loving mother of her three sons: John (Nancy), Steven, and Marc (Marion) Dear. The daughter of Concetta Tenisci Mattioni and Domenico Mattioni, she was one of ten children and remained close to her five brothers and four sisters her entire life. She is survived by her brothers John (Mary) Mattioni and Eugene (Marie) Mattioni and her sisters Helen (Andrew) Kelly, Angie (Klaus) Rohr and, Mae (Bruce) Hansen.

Rosalie was predeceased by her mother Concetta and older sister Mary (Guido) Fedele and brothers Blasco (Elenor) Mattioni, Dante (Susan), and Faust (Suzanne). She married Paul Dear on October 15, 1955 and the two of them began 65 years of married life. As a young woman, Rosalie was a skilled seamstress and made beautiful dresses and gowns for numerous occasions, including her sister Mary's wedding gown as well as her own. Rosalie also was a wonderful homemaker for many years and was devoted to caring for all her boys, teaching them how to cook, clean, and care for themselves.

Rosalie was very interested and engaged with the community and took great interest in events and opportunities available in the region. Local events like the first Earth Day, visits to museums and zoos, skating rinks, local hikes, and bicycle rides were regular activities that she enjoyed. She instilled in her sons a love of travel and adventure by always encouraging them to explore and visit new places. Later, she passed the Realtor exam and became a successful Real Estate Agent and Broker, working for the Lenny Agency, Paparone Realty, and Prudential Fox and Roach. She was often a member of the Million Dollar Sales Club; a difficult feat at the time and one that she was justifiably proud of. Over the years she helped many of us with home purchases and sales. Her Real Estate sales expertise led her into real estate investing in which, Paul and Rosalie became a successful team, owning or invested in as many as 7 properties as the years progressed.

Rosalie was always interested in new activities, taking up skiing and photography as an adult. She was also involved with the Comares Women's Group; her friends from South Philadelphia and the Glen Oaks Women's club consisting of friends in the neighborhood from South Jersey. For many years she and Paul were very involved in the Somerdale Presbyterian Church, too. In recent years, she and Paul had become very involved in the care and enjoyment of their 10 grandchildren. She would regularly visit with them and help to get them to their events. She attended Grandparents Day at the various elementary schools, took them to music and art lessons at Settlement Music School or the Fleishman Art Institute and the Arden Theater Company in Philadelphia. She would make regular trips to the Rock School for Ballet classes and loved to take them to shows under the big top when the circus was in town. When the shows or performances came around she was always sure to record the dates marked far in advance on their busy calendar. Meatball Mondays, as we called them, became one of the grandchildren's favorite traditions, started by Rosalie's mother Concetta and then continued on for many years after Concetta passed away. We would all enjoy pasta with meatballs and gravy on Monday evenings. There was always plenty to go around and often kids from the neighborhood would stop in to join in the meal. It was always special, sometimes more so when relatives were visiting from near or far, or when all her son's families would join in the meal. Rosalie's adventurous side often led to adventures with her children or grandkids in tow. Trips to Kansas City with Marc, vacations to the Northwest to visit Paul's family, John and Nancy to Disney World, an RV adventure to New England with sister Mary's family, Italy with her brothers and sisters and four weeks to Seattle in a pop-up camper with her son John and his children. Whatever the invitation, she was always game to try. Their 50th wedding anniversary in 4 corners state park with the entire family joining was a week of unique memories.

Until November of the past year, Rosalie and Paul were doing well and living at the Woodbury Mews in the apartment they had moved to four years ago. Unfortunately, the Covid-19 virus found its way into the Mews and both Rosalie and Paul became ill. Fortunately, Paul is recovering, but Rosalie was not able to overcome the damage caused by the virus. She will be missed by all who knew and loved her.

Services and interment are private at the request of the family.

Services