Carol Ann Sullivan

It is with deep sorrow we announce the passing of our beloved mother, Carol Ann Sullivan (nee Buckley) who left us on August 13, 2024, at the age of 81, while surrounded by her family at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, New Brunswick, NJ.

To celebrate her life, relatives and friends are invited to visit at the Thiele-Reid Family Funeral Home, 585 Belgrove Drive, Kearny, NJ on Sunday, August 18, 2024 from 2 to 6 p.m. The funeral will begin in the funeral home on Monday morning, August 19 at 8:30 a.m. then to St. Stephen’s R.C. Church, Kearny where a 10:00 a.m. Funeral Mass will be celebrated. Interment will follow at Holy Cross Cemetery, North Arlington, NJ.

 Carol Ann lived a beautiful full life.  She was a wonderful Mother, Grandmother, Sister, Aunt and friend who was always there when her family and friends needed her the most, offering support, wisdom, love in abundance and laughter. Her sense of humor and laughter was contagious. Full of love, strength and resilience, she touched the lives of all who knew her.  We have lost the greatest heart we have ever known.   

Carol’s spirit is carried forward by her daughters, Colleen Sullivan and Jennifer J. Cerniglia and her husband, Paul along with her grandchildren, Vincent, Gianna, Edward and Angelina DiBella and Alana and Caroline Cerniglia who were blessed to call her grandma.

Born and raised in Jersey City, NJ, Carol later lived in Bayonne, NJ then Little Egg Harbor, NJ before moving to Monroe Township, NJ eleven years ago. 

As a young girl, Carol left Dickinson High School in Jersey City feeling God’s call and made a vow to dedicate her life to religious service joining Sisters of St. John the Baptist. She continued her education at Gladstone Academy and Mount St. John Academy in the following years while moving around the country serving the Lord.

Mrs. Sullivan would eventually leave the order of Sisters of St. John the Baptist and earned her B.S. in Education from Seton Hall University. Carol began her teaching career at P.S. 34 in Jersey City. It was there where Carol would shape countless young minds as a loving, caring teacher.  Her dedication and lifetime of service was unmatched. Seeing a need and not waiting to be asked for assistance but anticipating and acting without a second’s hesitation was Carol’s way. That was her nature.  Self-esteem was her mantra, and work was never returned without a positive comment and her largely written ‘WOW’ across the top of her student's papers. Her legacy will live on in all of the children she has taught through the years. Carol’s dedication went beyond the classroom. She was the founder of the Concerned Teachers Assistance Program in Jersey City.  Her need to nurture and help the children of Jersey City far exceeded the limits of public school 34 where she spent her entire career before retiring in 2006.

Carol is also survived by her siblings, Margie DeFilippo, Joey Buckley, Dennis Buckley and Janet Scerbo and also many nieces and nephews and great-nieces and nephews.

She was predeceased by her other siblings, Jacqueline Buckley, Patricia Kent, Alice Dunne, Debbie Abeltin, Leo Buckley, Robert “Little” Buckley, Thomas Buckley, Kenneth Buckley and John “Buddy” Buckley.

There are no goodbyes for us.  Wherever you are, you will always be in our hearts.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Carol Ann Sullivan, please visit our floral store.