Obituary of Paula Ricciardi

Paula Ricciardi, 61, of Jackson, passed away peacefully surrounded by those she loved most on June 6, 2020. She was born in The Bronx and grew up in Yonkers, NY. She was a long time resident of Manalapan, NJ (Home of the Braves) and moved to Jackson in 2016. Paula had the warmest heart and welcomed anyone and everyone into her heart, her home, and her life with a glass of wine and her famous red sauce. She was known for her world class hugs, her infectious laugh, always knowing the weather, her chicken cutlets, and her famous one liners. She had a great love of breaking news, celebrity gossip, the Yankees, seasonal decorations and English history. She took great pride in being the head of the parents association for the Manalapan Braves baseball team and you could always find her rain or shine on a baseball field somewhere in the tri-state area cheering on her boys. 

She was a graduate of NYU and worked at Harcourt Brace Jovanich Trade magazine as a writer but spent most of her life devoted to her true love, being a wife, mother, and grandmother. She is survived by her parents, Paul and Gloria Antonicelli, her loving husband of 35 years, Richard, her sister and brother in law, Lynn and Walter Palma, her children, daughter Elizabeth and son in law Bryant, daughter Christina and soon to be son in law Mike, son Richie, her 2 dogs, Roxy and Rosie, and her grandchildren Bryant Jr and Maya Rose as well as numerous brothers and sisters in law, nieces, and nephews, and countless friends who were all family. 

Friends and family are invited to visit on Tuesday June 9, 2020 from 3:00pm to 7:00pm and Wednesday June 10, 2020 from 3:00pm to 7:00pm at Freeman Funeral Home Manalapan-Marlboro, 344 Route 9 North. A funeral service will be held at Freeman Funeral Home Manalapan-Marlboro on Thursday June 11, 2020 at 11:00am at the funeral home. To leave a condolence or find directions, visit www.freemanfuneralhomes.com.  In lieu of flowers, please consider a memorial donation to the ASPCA at https://www.aspca.org/ or to St. Jude Children’s Hospital at https://www.stjude.org/