Obituary of Phyllis Ann (Johnstone) Lepore

Phyllis Ann (Johnstone) Lepore daughter of Mildred and Walter Johnstone and wife of Patrick V. Lepore passed on October 24, 2020. Born on June 1, 1932, Phyllis was raised in Kearny, New Jersey. She married Patrick V. Lepore in 1954 and resided in Union, NJ. They raised five children: Vincent, Walter, Patrick, Kevin and Cynthia in Union, NJ before moving the family to Freehold, NJ in 1975. She has two Grandchildren: Jacqueline and Stephen. Phyllis was a member of the Franciscan Carmelite Third Order and was known for writing her prayers on paper to better understand and communicate with God. Phyllis studied at the Art Students League in New York City and mastered anatomical and figure drawing. She painted with watercolors, acrylics and oils and mastered the art of Batik. She was a mural artist and painted large Disney images for Holy Spirit School in Union NJ. Phyllis was an aerobics instructor during the early to mid 1980's working at the Diet Center in Freehold, NJ. She enjoyed dining at the Plaza Hotel and Resort in Manhattan NYC. It was her favorite restaurant. Phyllis taught her children to strive for amazing heights in sports such as competitive swimming, competitive diving, oratory speaking, music and art. She was the granddaughter of the early 20th century Major League Baseball umpire James E. Johnstone who in 1924 invented the one-bar baseball catcher’s mask. Phyllis loved animals including her precious dogs named Chico, Muffin, Piccolo and Poppy. She had Piccolo's blonde hair safely dyed green annually to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. She always loved the beach and ocean. Her favorite coastal town was Spring Lake N.J. where she connected with an Irish community as well as St. Catharine's Church. Her favorite song by Bruce Springsteen was "Hungry Heart". Every time the song was played on the radio she would sing along to it with a big smile on her face. Mom, be our guardian angel as we maneuver through life’s treacherous waters. We will sorely miss you, forever love you and pray that we as a family will all be together again.