Obituary of Margaret A. McGrath

Margaret (Meg) Salamone McGrath, age 83, passed away peacefully at her home in Belvidere on Sunday June 22nd, 2025. Meg was born in Brooklyn, New York, on June 21, 1942, the second child of Joe and Peggy Salamone. Her early childhood was spent in Ozone Park Queens among her siblings and extended family on her mother's side ( the DeSena clan).  She lived for a while on Long Island (in her 'tweens') and eventually her family moved to the Kansas City area. She graduated from Shawnee Mission North High School and attended Avila College (an all-girls school) where she was a cheerleader for their companion all-boys college (Rockhurst) when they won the NAIA National Basketball championship.  While in high school, she met Dan through her sister Mary, who was a friend of Dan's sister Trudy.  They were married in August 1965 and began their wonderful and wonder filled (almost 60 years) journey together.  First in New Mexico then (compliments of the US Army) in New Jersey.  

She nurtured, instructed, inspired, empowered, guided and loved her children David and Peggie through their formative years. She was a woman of strong and deep faith in Jesus and worked in family ministry at St. Patrick Church for many years, as well as, singing in the choir and serving as an extraordinary minister of the Eucharist. As her kids grew up and became more independent, she decided to return to school for a degree in Speech Pathology.  She taught at Lopatcong School from 1979-2004.  She loved her students and for the rest of her life delighted her friends with speech-class stories. While there, she made many dear and lasting friends among the faculty and staff. In her spare time, Meg was also a lover of movies (especially, classic films), and an avid (almost rabid) follower of Kansas University (KU) basketball,

Meg loved people and touched everyone she met with that love: family, friends, co-workers, neighbors, wait staff, nurses, people at the next table in a restaurant, fellow shoppers, any child, everyone!  Meg fiercely loved her DeSena cousins and enjoyed their get-together parties.  Her parish family (St. Patrick) was so dear to her and a source of joy and comfort through so many shared experiences.  Each of her siblings was special to her in their own way through times of laughter and sorrow.  She loved each member of her wide circle of friends uniquely. She loved her husband (Dan), her children (David and Peggie), and her grandchildren ( Basil and Magnolia) so deeply and powerfully that you could feel the love across a room or a country.

Meg is predeceased by her parents Joseph A. and Margaret (Silvis) Salamone, and her sister Cathy Salamone.  She is survived by her husband Dan; her children David (Nadia) and Peggie (Josh); her grandchildren Basil and Magnolia; her sisters Mary (Bob) Byram, JoAnne (Larry) Stimac; her brothers Joe (Eddi) and John (Merce). May she rest in peace.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated 11:00 AM, Tuesday, July 1, 2025 at St. Patrick R.C. Church, 327 Greenwich Street, Belvidere, NJ. Interment will follow in St. Patrick Cemetery, Belvidere.  Friends may call from 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM and 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM, Monday, June 30, 2025 at MacFadden Funeral Home.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in Meg's memory to St. Patrick R.C. Church, 327 Greenwich Street, Belvidere, NJ  07823 or the charity of one's choice.