Romilda Salardi Service Information

Romilda Salardi ( nee Nocito ) age 98 of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Salta, Argentina, and Roggiano Gravina, the Calabria region of Italy passed away surrounded by family on February 22, 2022. Beloved wife of the late Roberto Salardi; Loving mother of Angelina (Claude) Napoletano, Olga (the late Alfredo) Siravo, Monica (Michael) DeShazo, Silvia Salardi (Larry) Stolle, and the late Roberto Salardi Jr.; Cherished nonna of Vincenzo (Dale), Rocio (Ricardo), Emilia (Martin), Nancy (Richard), Robertito (Bianca), Gabriela (John), Jessika (Edward), and Nina; Admired great-nonna of Alexander, Elizabeth, Sophia, Josue, Uriel, Elijah, Brendan, Catalina, Edward Jr., John, Nora, Olivia, Anne, June, Amalia, and Henry; Dearest sister of the late Emilia (the late Guedino) Marisco. She leaves behind many nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends. 

Born the younger sister of the late Emilia (nee Nocito) Marsico to the late Domenico and Fiorina Nocito in Roggiano Gravina, Italy in 1923. Romilda and her sister grew up fast and took on many responsibilities at home as their mother, Fiorina, passed away when they were young. Romilda and Emilia’s grandparents looked after them as they worked on their farm and survived difficult years through World War II. Romilda met her late husband, Roberto Salardi, in their small town when she was 12 years old. He told her one day he would marry her. When Roberto was deployed,during World World II, Romilda promised she would wait for him to return. She waited 6 years. After they were reunited, they married and had their first daughter, Angelina. Soon after, the small family picked up and moved to Buenos Aires, Argentina to find opportunities for work and reunite with Romilda’s father. After they arrived in Buenos Aires, the late Roberto Salardi Jr. was born. Years went by and the family found their footing in General Guemes, a small town in the province of Salta, Argentina. Here they managed their own small market out of their own home, expanded their family to add three more daughters, Olga, Monica, and Silvia, and made lifelong friends. Romilda was the businesswoman behind their small family business. She attended to clients, ordered merchandise all while raising 5 children.   Searching again for opportunities for their family, the Salardis voyaged to the United States where they were sponsored and greeted with open arms by Romilda’s sister, Emilia, her husband Guerino, and the whole Marisco family. 

Life was different for Romilda in the United States. She found ways to provide for her family including working in the laundry department at Nazareth Hospital while also taking care of her husband, children, grandchildren, and even great-grandchildren. She fed everyone who entered her home on Shelmire Avenue, hungry or not, had quite the green thumb, turning even the smallest of spaces into garden masterpieces and she could sit on the beach all day with only a small cooler in tow. She loved to listen to her son, Roberto Jr., play folklore Argentinian music on his guitar. She learned what it meant to sacrifice at a young age, but she was smart and took advantage of the opportunities that came her way. In her most recent years, Romilda could no longer take care of herself and was aided and supported every day by her daughters. Monica flying in from Florida to help for weeks at a time, Angie giving a shoulder to lean on during toughest days, and most specifically her primary caregivers Silvia, Larry, and Olga. 

A friend shared with me that the day nonna passed, 2/22, is symbolic of angels. As I researched further, I found in Christianity, the number 222 represents the Holy Trinity - God the Father, Jesus Christ, and The Holy Spirit while in Judaism it represents two angels always watching over you. The spiritual meaning of 222 is that you’re on the right path, you’re in the right place at the right time. Follow joy to ascend to your soul’s purpose. There’s so much symbolism and comfort here as we know our nonna, is now our angel in the sky. Everyone has a story, and when living just shy of 99 years, the story is long, full of twists and turns, adventure, sadness, joy, and everything in between. We will continue to talk about her and tell her story, the story of Romilda, our hero, our fighter, our angel. Relatives and Friends are invited to the viewing on Saturday from 9-10 am at St. Bernard Church on Cottage St. and Bleigh Ave. Funeral Mass at 10 am. Int. SS Peter & Paul Cemetery.  In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the American Heart and Lung Association or the Alzheimer’s Association.  

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