Obituary of Benito Salafia

Benito Salafia, age 79, of Paterson passed away peacefully surrounded by his loving family on Thursday, December 7, 2017. Benito was born November 18, 1938 in Melilli, Sicily, Italy. He came to the United States in 1962 and settled in Paterson. Benito started working at an early age as a crane operator in Sicily, building refineries. He met his wife Teresa & they were married in 1961. They came to America in 1962 & settled in Paterson, where they raised their 4 children. Within several years, he started his own company, Salafia Roofing & Siding, a pioneer in the business who helped launch many careers. He was a sports car enthusiast, who loved the outdoors, especially being at the beach. He demonstrated a love for life & family like no other & fought with the same passion until the very end. He is survived by his wife: Teresa (Calafiore) Salafia, his two daughters: Ida Hernandez and her husband Tito of Flanders, NJ and Rosanna Salafia and her partner Joe Romano of Roseland, NJ, and his two sons: Sal Salafia and his wife Amy of Flanders and Joe Salafia and his wife Mary of Flanders, NJ. He is also survived by his ten grandchildren; Jaqueline, Jessica Gianni and Joseph Hernandez, Sal, Jr., Selina, Charlotte and Bella Salafia and Gino and Joseph Romano, his sisters: Lucia, Vittoria, Marinella, Candida, and four brothers: Vincenzo, Angelo, Santo and Nazzareno. He was predeceased by his brothers, Sebastiano and Ottavio. A Mass of Christian burial will be held 11:00 am on Monday, December 11 at Blessed Sacrament R.C. Church, 308 6th Avenue, Paterson, NJ. Burial will be in Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, Totowa, NJ. Visiting hours will be Sunday, December 10 from 3-7 PM at DeLuccia - Lozito Funeral Home, 265 Belmont Avenue, Haledon, NJ. .