A funeral mass was offered Thursday, July 9 at St. James Church in Red Bank for Roselyn ‘Lynn’ Azzolina, who died Thursday, July 2, at home. The mass was at 11 a.m. and burial followed at Fairview Cemetery in Middletown.
To me, Lynn was a friend, a great mom to her entire family, a fun-loving lady who was great to be with at any party or social event, the perfect political wife but always the proper, sophisticated, knowledgeable and proud wife of a Naval Officer.
Lynn always stood in the background of the Love of her life, her famous husband, Navy Capt. Joseph Azzolina, Assemblyman, Senator, outstanding businessman who brought his dad’s small market on Miller Street Highlands into the first superfood market in the Bayshore when he and his Dad opened the Food Basket on Bay Avenue in Highlands. Professionally and ever smiling, she was always at his side when needed, always ready to shake a thousand hands and welcome people, then go home in Middletown and prepare dinner or perhaps help with homework for their youngsters.
But I also knew Lynn after her husband, Joe, purchased The Courier weekly newspaper in Middletown and she took on her own society page while I was editor.
A nurse by profession … she had met her future husband when he was hospitalized many years before … Lynn loved covering all the social events, whether they were political fundraisers, fundraising events for local charities or specific benefits for a special cause or person in need. She went to each of the events, fastidiously dressed, always, and always with her camera in hand.
When she returned to the office and handed her camera over to the photographer to develop, she was always in a rush … dropped off the film, reloaded the camera, and was off again on another big event.
Wednesdays were deadline day, noontime, at that time, and all of us could count on Lynn arriving sometime around 10 in the morning, bustling, smiling, sharing boxes of pastries or other sweets for the crew to enjoy with coffee, and telling us all abut the wonderful party she had been to the night before, or the magnificent home she had visited, or incredibly generous people she had met. Then she tucked herself away in her corner of the press room and began writing her several hundred words explaining all the events she had been to that week.
Lynn was a writer there was no doubt of that. She was full of adjectives, great on adverbs to describe the pace of an event, or the speed of a cadence in a voice or dance step.
IF she had a weakness, it was her own cadence in getting her story done. “Oh, Muriel,” she’d say, when I asked when her story would be reedy, “I’m just finishing it now. I just have to wait for someone to call me back to tell me the type of material that was in that dress the hostess wore!” Or “oh, Muriel, I’ll have it ready soon. It’s ok if we’re a little late.”
You couldn’t get angry with Lynn. And she was right. It was always ok if we were a little late!
The letters and notes we got from readers praising Lynn’s coverage, or folks stopping in the office on Route 325 to pick up extra copies because they had been mentioned in her column were proof every day that Lynn Azzolina might be the wife of a politician and naval officer, but she was certainly an intelligent, hardworking, and intelligent woman on her own,
My prayers and sympathy to the entire Azzolina family, her sons who loved and care for her so well and her daughters who loved to brag about their mom and how very special she was.
Lynn left her own special mark on her family as a mom and grandmas as well as happy and unforgettable memories on all who knew her.
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
Amen
Hail, Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
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