POLILLO, GERALDINE MAE

POLILLO,
GERALDINE MAE
Geraldine Mae Polillo, 85, passed away at her home in Wildwood, NJ on July 30, 2025. Our family takes great comfort in knowing she is at peace and finally reunited with her husband, John Polillo, who passed away in 1986.
Gerri was born on January 31,1940 in Pittman, NJ and lived in Cape May County for most of her life, graduating from Cape May High School in 1959. She was a devoted, loving, and selfless mother who would do anything for her children. She always cared about the welfare of others and treated people with understanding and empathy and forgave easily. She treasured her family and was extremely close with her sisters, Elaine Kalbach and Shirley Cornwell, whom she would speak with almost daily.
Gerri had great strength of body, mind, and spirit. She lived very simply and did not care about material things. She had tremendous wisdom and understood what is truly important in life. She had a special place in her heart for animals and cared for many homeless cats over the years and was best friend to her son's dogs, Buddy and Chip, whom she would walk and spoil with treats.
Gerri was musically gifted and could play the piano without having had any lessons, a gift passed down from her mother, who could play the piano and violin by ear, and later passed on to her son, who plays the saxophone. She enjoyed playing Yahtzee, Pinochle, and Mexican Train Dominoes with her family. She had a wonderful sense of humor. When together with family, hysterical fits of contagious laughter often would spontaneously occur. She was a sharp-witted person and a master of words and grammar. She enjoyed reading and watching movies and the show, “Pitbulls and Parolees.”
She had an incredible work ethic, gained from working the fields with her family as a child on their farm in Mullica Hill, NJ. Among the crops grown were tomatoes for the Campbells Soup Company. She worked as a waitress at the original Golden Inn in Avalon, NJ. Her final job was at the Coast Guard Training Center in Cape May, NJ, where she was “grandma” to many recruits, offering kind words and hugs.
Gerri was greatly loved by her family, and our hearts are overwhelmed with sorrow. She is survived by her cherished children, Rita McKelvey and John McKelvey (Terrell); beloved sisters, Elaine Kalbach and Shirley Cornwell; dearly loved grandchildren, John McKelvey (Channing) and Andrew McKelvey (Jamie); great grandchildren, Shae, Emilia, Jack, and Claire; nieces and nephews, Cathy Kalbach, Bill Kalbach (Christine), Geoffrey Small, John Cornwell (Pat), and April Scardigno (Nick). She was predeceased by her parents, Mae Locke and Joseph Locke; her husband, John Polillo; and nieces Margie Piro, Shirley Ann Velozo, and Norma Small.
Funeral services will take place on August 6 with visitation from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., followed by a service at 11:00 a.m. at Ingersoll-Greenwood Funeral Home, 1201 Central Avenue, North Wildwood, NJ. In lieu of flowers, please send a donation in Gerri's memory to Villalobos Rescue Center, P.O. Box 39, Napoleonville, LA 70390.