Wanda Veronica (Zaffino) Vodola, 96, of Sandy Hook and formerly of Redding, died peacefully on Thursday, May 4, 2023. She was the wife of the late Antonio F. Vodola.

Mrs Vodola was born May 2, 1927, in Stamford, Connecticut, daughter of the late Pasquale and Laura Diletta (Colosi) Zaffino. She is survived by her son, Peter J. Vodola, and daughter-in-law, Celeste G. Vodola, of Sandy Hook; her son-in-law, Kevin Hall, of Hawaii; and her grandchildren, Cody and Sara Hall, and Mary (and fiancé Evan Lockhart), Rebecca (and fiancé Konnor Dugan), Joanna, Angela, and Veronica Vodola; and many nieces, nephews, grand-nieces, grand-nephews, and cousins. In addition to her husband, parents, and her daughter, Andrea (Vodola) Hall, she is predeceased by her brother, Egidio R. Zaffino, and her sisters, Violet Nedley and Dorothea DeFilippis.

She was a 1948 graduate of New Haven State Teachers College (now Southern Connecticut State University), the first in her family to obtain a college degree. She worked as an elementary and middle school teacher for Stamford Public Schools.

She and Tony were married in 1952 — a loving marriage that would last until Tony’s death 62 years later. In 1953, they traveled across the United States, exploring national parks and other places of interest, and visiting relatives. They were very involved parishioners at St Mary’s Roman Catholic Church in Stamford. Wanda loved singing in the St Mary’s choir.

In 1969, they moved from Stamford into the Redding house that Tony built, and both became active parishioners at St Patrick’s Roman Catholic Church in Redding.

Starting in 1970, she was the church organist and music director at St Patrick’s. She started a choir and for many years led concerts held prior to Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve, singing carols in German, French, Polish, and other languages — a tradition that reflected her love of singing, sacred music, and languages, and the importance of her faith life.

Mrs Vodola was also a music teacher and vocal instructor. She taught granddaughters, many nieces and nephews, and generations of children in Stamford and Redding how to play the piano.

Later in life, she and Tony moved to Newtown, where they became active members of the St Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church parish. Her love of music led her to join the St Rose choir.

Wanda stayed in touch with many cousins all her life. During World War II, she wrote weekly to each of her cousins who were in the military — sometimes writing up to 17 letters a week. She loved attending the annual family reunion, the Colosi Family Picnic, where she especially enjoyed catching up with her beloved cousins, including Fran Hickey, Amy Adams, Dee Ambrogio, Terry Arcano, and others in the Arcano, Fabrizio, and Colosi families. She also played pinochle weekly with her nonagenarian brother and a cousin for years, into 2023.

A voracious reader, she was a hard-to-beat Scrabble player, as well as a wellspring of knowledge about words, art, films, music, and many other topics. No part of her life was more important to her than her faith and her family, and she had an exceptionally active prayer life. She greatly loved being a grandmother and it was a joy for her to be able to watch her grandchildren grow into adulthood.

Her family will receive relatives and friends at Honan Funeral Home, 58 Main Street, Newtown, Connecticut, on Friday, May 19, 2023, from 4 to 8 pm. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Saturday, May 20, 2023, at 9:30 am at St Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church, 46 Church Hill Road, Newtown, Connecticut. Burial will be in St Rose Cemetery, 20 Cherry Street, Sandy Hook, Connecticut.

The Newtown Bee May 19, 2023