Plan for the Future
Florence Reino Tafaro, died on Tuesday, October 24 in Florida after a brief illness and long, happy life. She was 95.
She was a full-time resident of Vero Beach for the past thirty years. She was born and reared in Millburn, NJ, and lived much of her adult life in Maplewood and Bedminster, NJ.
Florence was predeceased by her parents, John and Rosalie Reino, her husband Joseph W. Tafaro, MD, and her son Joseph, Jr. She was also predeceased by sisters Marion Melielo, Connie Klena, and infant brother Daniel Reino. She is survived by her sister, Edith Collopy, sons Stephen (Laura Nash) Tafaro, and John (Charlotte) Tafaro, daughters Suzanne (JT) Mooney, and Rosemary Tafaro (John Britton), thirteen grandchildren, and seventeen great-grandchildren (with one on the way), as well as many nieces, nephews, and dear friends, all of whom loved her very much.
Florence was born in Millburn, NJ on November 18, 1927. She attended St. Rose of Lima grammar school and Millburn High School. Upon graduation she attended St. Michael’s Hospital Nursing School where she earned her R.N. and met her future husband, Joseph W. Tafaro, MD. Her nursing career included caring for various family members’ common illnesses, assorted broken bones, and administering the occasional vaccination. She was a devoted wife and mother, and spent countless hours driving her children, and others’ children, to a wide array of activities and sporting events. Well into her forties, she resumed her formal education when she enrolled at Kean College (now Kean University) and earned her bachelor’s degree in art history at age 50, for which she was most proud. In retirement Florence enjoyed the warm weather in Florida, cooking for family and friends, reading multiple books each week, and her book club.
