Aberdeen Resident Passes Away, Fund Started For Her Daughter, 12

ABERDEEN, NJ — A longtime resident of Aberdeen Township has passed away, and now a GoFundMe page has been established to help pay for her daughter's college education fund.

Patricia Merlo lived in Aberdeen for the past 16 years. She worked as a first-grade teacher in Westfield public schools. She leaves behind her husband and a 12-year-old daughter. The page has raised $27,000 so far.

"Tricia was diagnosed with stage-four breast cancer this past summer," according to the page. "One short month later, she was tragically taken away from all who loved her."

"Tricia was devoted to her faith and is now pain-free and at peace with God," it continued. "She passed away peacefully on Monday morning, September 14."

Merlo was 53 years old and taught at Jefferson School in Westfield.

The fundraising page also said, "Patricia Merlo meant the world to all who knew her. She was a loving wife to her husband, Brian. Tricia was a dedicated and nurturing first-grade teacher, an irreplaceable part of her school community. She was an honest, generous and loyal friend."

The page says Merlo's daughter now wants to be a teacher.

"By far, Tricia's greatest blessing was being an amazing mom to her dearest daughter, Catharine. Catharine, 12 years old, is a beautifully talented dancer. Catharine also aspires to become a teacher because she has seen first hand the impact her mother has had on the lives of so many children and their families."

Her daughter wrote on a memorial page, "I'm going to miss all of my hugs before bed, when I wake up, after getting off stage, and just whenever I wanted one!"

Memorial services will be held Oct. 2 and 3.

Her obituary can be found here. On the memorial page, a friend wrote, "Jefferson School's first grade was truly fortunate to have Mrs. Merlo as kind, warm-hearted fabulous teacher!"

All contributions to the account will directly be deposited to Catharine Merlo's college fund.