Elda Giacomelli passed away on January 17, 2022 at the age of 96 years. She was born in Yorkville, Ohio, on May 30, 1925.
A graduate of Yorkville High School, she resided in Yorkville with her family until 1953 when she moved to Los Angeles, California. Possessing a pioneering spirit for women of the era, she sought to live a life of independence on the west coast, moving there on her own in 1953.
She remained in Los Angeles her entire life. She was residing in Pasadena, California at the time of her death. During her time in Los Angeles she worked for the Atlantic Richfield Oil Company (ARCO) which later became BP. She worked alongside resident doctors as a medical records coordinator for the company and traveled in the years before her retirement between Los Angeles and Philadelphia on behalf of the company and its employees in regards to facilitating their health records and benefits. After her retirement she enjoyed the arts, and traveling around the country and the world, but always returning to southern California which she loved.
She was the later in life daughter of the late Dominick Giacomelli and Giaconda Pinnochi Giacomelli who immigrated to the United States from the verdant area near Florence, Italy. Dominick came to America seeking a better life for his family prior to WW1, while his wife and Elda’s three older sisters remained in Italy. After the war ended Dominick sent for his wife and two of his daughters, the late Dina Giacomelli Butera, and the late Fanni Giacomelli Fior and they began a life together as a family in Yorkville, Ohio. Her eldest sister, Maria, chose to remain in Italy her entire life. Both Elda Giacomelli and her older brother, the late Mario Giacomelli, were the American born children of Dominick and Giaconda. Elda was the contemporary aunt of the late Armand Fior and the late Norma Butera Moskonas both of Yorkville, Ohio. She is the last of her generation to sadly pass away. She is survived by her great nephews and great nieces, William Moskonas of Dillonvale, Ohio, and Lisa McFarland of Wheeling, West Virginia, the children of the late Alex Moskonas and the late Norma Butera Moskonas, and Dale Fior who resides in the NYC area, and Janice Fior who resides in Florida, being the children of the late Armand Fior and the late Eleanor Rizzo Fior.
Elda Giacomelli will always be remembered for her kindness and her gentility. She was a brave woman who made decisions in life that were right for her. She possessed a supportive and non- judgmental outlook and attitude toward life in general, and particularly toward others. She was always forward thinking and able to fully understand and embrace the great social changes that occurred in the country during her lifetime. Even at the end of her time on this earth she was engaged and exhibited the strength and understanding, the bravery, gratitude and appreciation for life that always characterized her time on this earth. Her kind and loving nature, and her strong, supportive ways will always be remembered by those who have known her, and in particular, by her great nephew, Dale Fior.
A day of memorial is set for Wednesday, June 1, 2022, starting with a memorial gathering at the Wilson Funeral Home, 920 National Road in Bridgeport, Ohio at 9:30 am. It will be followed by a memorial mass at 11:00 am at St. Joseph’s Parish in Tiltonsville, Ohio. Burial will follow immediately thereafter at the Upland Heights Cemetery, Warren Township, Ohio, just northwest of Yorkville, Ohio. She will be placed to eternal rest alongside her mother and father according to her wishes. Rest in Peace Aunt Elda. You are in our hearts.
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