Phillippa Connelly

Phillippa “Phyllis” H. Connelly

With heavy hearts, and yet grateful spirits, her children and family announce the death of their beloved Mother, Phillippa, also known as “ Phyllis” H. Connelly, on Ash Wednesday morning, February 10, 2016.  Her death came unexpectedly and instantly as she was waiting in her youngest daughter, Ruth’s car, dressed and ready to embark on their busy day.  It came in spite of the valiant efforts of the Niles City and Lane Emergency Medical squads, and the dedicated, professional and skilled efforts of the emergency room doctors and nurses, including her eldest son, Tom, a registered nurse at Trumbull Memorial Hospital.  In God’s infinite wisdom and mercy, it was as if He said, “Enough, my precious child, you are coming with me, now.”  She was 85 years old and had been successfully battling multiple myeloma and breast cancer since August, 2012.
“Phillippa,” as she was known to her family and closest friends until the nuns at St. Stephens’s School “Americanized” her name to “Phyllis,” was born on December 2, 1930 to her parents, Carmen and Angeline (Maiorca) Cicero.  Born at home in Niles, and later moving to her marital residence directly across the street, she lived her entire life on the same street and in the same neighborhood where her large Italian family settled upon their immigration from Sicily to the United States at the beginning of the 20th Century.
She attended St. Stephen Elementary School and graduated close to the top of her 1948 Class of Niles McKinley High School.  Certainly college material, she opted instead for love and family life when she met and later married her husband, Thomas R. “Whitey” Connelly, Sr.  They were wed on October 21, 1950, and they shared nearly 58 years of married life until his passing on May 19, 2008.  Together, they raised six children, all of whom survive, “three boys and three girls, and in that order,” because as she frequently said to them, “That is what I wanted and asked God to give me, even before I met your father!”  A wonderful and skilled homemaker, cook and baker, it was, however, the raising and care of children which was her big ambition and which became her life’s work.  Besides her own brood, she was the favorite choice for baby-sitter and caregiver to children in her extended family and neighborhood and beyond.  Even after the death of her husband, she spent her days as “Mother-in-residence” at her daughter’s business, Connelly’s Flowers, LLC in downtown Niles.  It was not uncommon for customers to stop by and have a cup of coffee and a visit with her, sometimes forgetting why they had stopped at the store in the first place. She was sincerely interested in people and their lives, and had honed the skill of being an active listener, non-judgmental, slow to advise and direct, and as her best friend said, “worthy of your trust, because you could tell her anything, and you knew she would not repeat it and spread it around.” She believed in God and was a member of Mt. Carmel Church where she served its school and PTA, and its summer festivals until she was no longer able.  She believed in education and the love of learning for learning’s sake, and she instilled and encouraged that in her children.  She loved music and movies, books and theater, and popular culture, sometimes to the surprise, if not the chagrin, of her grandchildren and most recently, two great-granddaughters, Lucy and Charlotte Ruth.  She was “Ready for Hillary” and hopeful that she would live to see a woman elected President of the United States.
We part with her most begrudgingly, as we miss her already.
She is survived and mourned by her six children and their families:
Tom and Karen (Williams) Connelly of Niles and their children Tom B. Connelly of Niles, and Megan and Brian Gibson and their daughter of Brunswick;
Chris and Karen (Leard) Connelly of Bazetta and their children, Alyssa Connelly and her fiancé, Ryan Bisset of Warren, and Spc. Jason Connelly stationed with the U.S. Army in Monterey California;
Jim Connelly and Michael Umpleby of Akron and Niles;
Sharon and John Conklin of Wilmette, Illinois and their children, Helen and Ben Toronyi of Chicago and Phillip Conklin and his fiancé, Erin Frederick of Nashville, Tennessee;
Angela and Joe Prada of North Olmsted and their children, Becky and Tim Smanik and their daughter, of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Liz and K.C. Petraitis of Lakewood and Joe Prada of Lakewood; 
Ruth Connelly, her caregiver, confidante and most recently, business partner, with whom she shared her home.
She is also survived by her brother-in-law, Tony Bonanno of Niles and sister-in-law, Frances Cicero of Niles, as well as many cousins, nieces and nephews, good friends, neighbors and “co-workers.”
Besides her parents and husband, she was preceded in death by her siblings, Carmen Cicero, Jr. as a toddler, Carmen Cicero II as an infant, Joseph Paul Cicero, Thelma Bonanno, Rose Parks, Sarella Gustovich, and Carmen S. “Tex” Cicero. 
Family and friends may call 4 to 8 p.m. Monday, February 15, at Joseph A. Rossi and Sons Funeral Home, 457 Robbins Ave., Niles.  A prayer service will be conducted by the Mt. Carmel Bereavement Committee at 7:30 p.m.  A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Tuesday, February 16, at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, 381 Robbins Ave., Niles, preceded by a 9:30 a.m. prayer service at the funeral home.  Immediately following Mass, a committal service will be celebrated in the Niles City Cemetery Chapel.
Cremation will follow with inurnment at a later date and location at the convenience of the family.
Phillippa’s family acknowledges with sincere gratitude the compassionate and skilled care provided her by Dr. Z.S. Mangalj, M.D. and staff, Dr. Amy Awaida, M.D. and staff at the Hope Center, Dr. Rudy M. Rouweyha, D.P.M. and Dr. Richard Loges, M.D. of Trumbull Memorial Hospital.
Arrangements are being handled by The Joseph Rossi and Sons Funeral Home in Niles.
Family and friends can light a candle, sign the guestbook and send email condolences at www.josephrossifuneralhome.com.

 Service Information