GERARDINO, Elvia P. (nee Perdomo) -92, of Wayne passed away on October 14, 2018. Born in Dolores, Colombia she lived in Paterson before moving to Wayne 30 years ago. She was a home health aide with Always There, Inc. and
a parishioner of Our Lady of the Valley R.C. Church in Wayne.
Elvia was a very caring person.

Beloved daughter of the late Marcos and Elisa (nee Villarreal) Perdomo.
Devoted mother of Flor Cardenas and her husband Peter of Haledon, Ruth Gerardino and her husband Juan Olivares of Wayne, Stella Segovia of Haledon, Jairo Gerardino and his wife Martha Sanchez of Colombia, Astrid Cardenas and her husband Orlando of Hackettstown and Martha De Bustamante and her husband Gustavo of Wanaque.
Loving grandmother of 12 grandchildren and great-grandmother of 4.

Who was Elvia Perdomo Gerardino? She was a loving, compassionate, funny, strong, and a beautiful woman that taught my siblings and I the meaning of hard-work and sacrifice for family. A good-looking gal who always believed in being, doing, and looking her best. In many ways she was a diva who, even at the age of 92, would think twice before going anywhere without her make-up and hair being done.
A girl from humble beginnings who grew up in a small town in Colombia. She loved music and had the gift of a wonderful voice which she used to praise God in her hometown church. She loved riding horses and spending time with her brothers. She married dad at the age of 21 and bore six children: Flor, Ruth, Stella, Jairo, Astrid, and Martha. She was a woman of faith who faced many struggles in life and yet never wavered in her trust in God. She held many titles of great importance: daughter, sister, wife, mother, aunt, grand-mother, great grand-mother and care taker. In every role she played, she excelled because she poured her heart and soul into everything she did.
Mom was sociable, people genuinely enjoyed her company because she would find humor in everything, even in stressful situations. So, you could say that she was the life of the party.
Her main goal in life was to ensure her children had an education so we could strive to be the best at whatever we chose to do. She did not believe in barriers that would keep her or her children from getting ahead. Although English was not her first language, she managed to learn it, and proudly pass the U.S. naturalization test with flying colors. She instilled that same “can do” attitude in her children, an attitude where one has no limits regardless of ethnicity or gender.
Mom was the beloved matriarch of a large family. She has six children, twelve grand-children, and four great-grand-children plus one on the way, and each of us will miss her dearly. She was a warrior from beginning to end. Whether it was praying and nursing her children back to health, securing finances for them to attend school, or in the end fighting for her very life. In the middle of her pain she found time to pray for us and our wellbeing, asking God for protection for each one’s home and family.
The last four weeks were especially difficult and stressful for her and for all of us. It was painful watching her drift away a little more each day. We hoped and prayed for a miracle that would restore her health and bring her back to us. All of us dreaded losing her, and the mere thought of it made me physically ill.
These difficult times however, have also been a wonderful display of love for mom which she never hesitated to return. She made sure she told us all, that she loved us and was thankful for all we were doing for her. Through the midst of these weeks, she often used her witty sense of humor in those tense situations. I think it was her way of coping with the pain. She wanted her children to remember her as the funny, witty, and outgoing woman that she had been. After her second surgery, when her physical strength was gone and the pain was severe momma would try to smile and joke in the hospital room and say “If I am going to die, it would be like a Perdomo, with a great sense of humor and the strength of a warrior.”
I loved all these things about mom and so did my dad, my siblings and the entire family. But the most precious thing that mom gave us all was to know that she believed Jesus was her Lord and King, the one to whom she would go to in moments of anguish, as she entrusted herself and her dear ones. The one she prayed to every night in her home, as she locked every door and window and shut every curtain. She set the example for us to pray without ceasing and never give up. She also taught us the value of family, love, and the importance to support one another. That value was in full display for all to see throughout this tough time. We were all there for her, but also comforting and loving one another. Her last gift our mom gave to us was the gift of reconciliation, love, family, and a reminder that we would be, one UNIT, in spite of it all. I know God the father smiled, hugged and welcomed her home last Sunday and said well-done Elvia Perdomo! As she proudly called herself.
The pain of losing mom is real and deep. But in the middle of that pain my Savior Jesus is assuring all of us, her loved ones, that we can grieve with hope. Dr. Charles Stanley wrote on grieving as a necessary part of healing. He refers to 1 Thessalonians 4:13 and states “God understands your need to grieve better than you do, but He longs “that you may not grieve, as do the rest who have no hope.”
Revelation 21:4 (NIV) speaks of that hope, “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
As the lyrics of a famous song says: We can cry with hope, we can say goodbye with hope, because we know that this good bye is not the end. We can grieve with hope, because we believe with hope that there is a place that by God’s grace we will see her beautiful face again.



The family will receive family and friends on Tuesday from 4-8 pm at Vander Plaat-Vermeulen Memorial Home, 530 High Mountain Road, Franklin Lakes.
Funeral Services Wednesday 10 am at the funeral home followed by an 11 am Mass at Our Lady of the Valley R.C. Church, 630 Valley Road, Wayne, NJ.
Entombment Garden of Memories Mausoleum, Township of Washington.