In Loving Memory of Janet Gregorio

Janet Oldaker Gregorio, beloved wife, mother, grandmother, aunt, sister, and friend, passed away on June 18, 2026 at the age of 84.

Janet was born during a blizzard on February 26, 1942 on Beauty Mountain in Fayette County, West Virginia, to Okey and Hazel Lykins Oldaker. The daughter of a coal miner, she was the seventh of eight children and grew up in Edmond, West Virginia. She took classes in a one-room schoolhouse for most of her childhood and spent a lot of her time with her neighbors and friends, Fran and Connie Gillespie. In 1956, she began her studies at Nuttall High School in Lookout, West Virginia, where she was crowned Miss Nuttall in 1958.

After graduation, Janet moved to Washington, D.C. with her youngest sister and lifelong friends to work for the Department of the Navy. At a dance in October 1961, she met John Gregorio, a young Marine stationed in Quantico, Virginia. When John asked for her phone number, Janet accidentally gave him the wrong one. Luckily, he had walked her home that evening, remembered where she lived, and returned to see her the next day.

Janet and John soon moved to Staten Island, New York, where John was born and raised. It was at this time that Janet converted to Catholicism, with her dear friend Barbara Cunningham serving as her Godmother. Janet and John married ten months later on August 18, 1962 at St. Michael’s Catholic Church. They shared nearly 64 years of marriage.

Janet and John made their home on Staten Island until 1985. During her time there, Janet was a member of the Blessed Sacrament Mothers’ Guild and looked forward to her weekly mothers’ night out of taking ceramics classes with her friends. She also worked for many years as a secretary at the Jewish Community Center of Staten Island.

In 1985, Janet and John moved to Ormond Beach, Florida, where Janet was proud to build her first home from the ground up. Together, they owned and operated their business, Volusia Process and Courier, for more than thirty years.

Together, Janet and John raised four children: Terri Giuffrida and her husband, Ralph; John Gregorio and his wife, Jennifer; Gina Granello and her husband, Thomas; and Kate Shields and her husband, Ryan. Janet was a proud grandmother to Monica, Andrea, Thomas (Anissa), Peter, Jack, and Avery.

Family was at the center of Janet’s life. When she was nine years old, her niece Leeanna was born, and Janet knew that loving and caring for children would be one of the great purposes of her life. She made sure she was present for every birth and special occasion in the lives of her children and grandchildren, always showing her love by being there. Her youngest grandchildren brought her tremendous joy in the later years of her life.

Janet remained deeply connected to her West Virginia roots and to the large family in which she was raised. She took great pride in her children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, siblings, and cousins. She was the thread that kept generations of family connected to one another.

Janet loved gardening and took great pride in the flowers and landscaping surrounding her home. Her work was recognized when she received an award for the most beautiful landscaping in the Trails neighborhood. She also had a gift for decorating and took great pleasure in making her home beautiful. She loved browsing estate sales in search of knick-knacks, enjoyed shopping trips to Talbots, and was a lifelong Elvis Presley fan. For more than two decades, she was also a proud Red Hat Lady.

Above all, Janet valued the people in her life. She kept a long list of friends and family members whom she called regularly and never forgot a birthday or special occasion. She frequently sent cards, magazine clippings, and newspaper articles to let others know she was thinking of them.

Janet was predeceased by her parents, Okey and Hazel Oldaker; her parents-in-law, Dominic and Catherine Gregorio; her siblings, Haskell, Alma, Anna Jean, Glenn, Dennis, Carolyn, and Phyllis, and her sister-in-law, Laurene Gregorio.

She is survived by her devoted husband, John; her children and their spouses; her grandchildren; her brother-in-law, Anthony Gregorio; her sister-in-law, Florence Oldaker; her godson, Richie Sichenzio; and a wide circle of nieces, nephews, cousins, and dear friends.

The family extends its heartfelt gratitude to Dr. Ruby Deveras, Janet’s oncologist at Halifax Hospital, and her staff for the compassionate and loving care they provided over the past nine years. The family is also grateful to Halifax Hospice.

Our Janet Queen will be deeply missed and lovingly remembered.

Arrangements are forthcoming in honor of Mrs. Janet Gregorio