Carmel Matulek

AUSTINTOWN - Carmel Tomesina Margaret Orsini Matulek, born Oct. 29, 1935, passed away Sept. 16, 2018, surrounded by her family.
Carmel was a force of nature, who lived by her own words of wisdom, “Be small, but mighty.”
She loved dancing, and when she was young aspired to be a Rockette. In her later years, she became an avid line dancer. She was also a seasoned world traveler who saw the Great Wall of China, traveled through the Panama Canal, whale watched in Alaska, kissed the Blarney Stone in Ireland, and relished in the beauty of a gondola ride through Venice.
Carmel was active in many organizations and clubs as well, including Canfield Card Club, AARP, Christian Women, King’s Kids, and as an usher at Power’s Auditorium, a hospice volunteer, and many more.
Despite all of these accomplishments, Carmel considered her family to be her greatest achievement. When asked what she wanted people to know about her life, she said, “I would tell them I had the best husband. I was happy, and I had a lot of love in my family.” How right she was.
She was preceded in death by her husband Don “Bunny,” whom she married Nov. 8, 1958, and her parents, Andy and Agnes.
Carmel leaves behind her siblings, Mary and Tom (Carolyn); her four, children Joe (Linda), Don (Lori), Andy (Marsha), and Tammy (Benny); her five grandchildren, Stephanie (Ryan), Hannah (Holly), Alex, Aubrey, and Joshua; two great-grandchildren, Delaney and Ashlyn; and all of the countless other family and friends whom she mothered. They were her everything.
Family and friends may call Friday from 9 to 11:30 a.m. at the Higgins-Reardon Funeral Homes, Austintown Chapel. Prayers will begin at 11:30 a.m.at the funeral home, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at noon at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Church.
In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that material tributes take the form of donations to Victoria House Entertainment Fund, 5295 Ashley Circle, Austintown, OH 44515.
Visit www.higgins-reardon.com to send condolences to the family.