Anthony Seminara

Anthony Seminara of Cherry Hill, NJ died on August 23, 2025 at the Samaritan Hospice Center in Voorhees, NJ.  Anthony was born on October 14, 1930 to Salvatore and Concetta Seminara at Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia. When he was a toddler, his parents moved to New York for several years to be closer to his maternal relatives.

He then spent seven formative years in Sicily during World War II (1939 – 1946). After the tragic early passing of his mother from then-untreatable rheumatic heart disease, he returned to Philadelphia in 1947 where he would reside until 1994, when he moved to Cherry Hill, NJ to be close to his grandchildren.

A graduate of West Philadelphia High School (1949), Anthony earned a B.A. in Education/French from West Chester Teacher College (now West Chester University) in 1955 and an M.A. in Secondary Education from Penn State University in 1966.

Anthony completed his compulsory military service in the U.S. Army in 1957 and was stationed in Metz, France, an experience he cherished greatly. While in Europe, he returned to his parents’ hometown of Gangi (Palermo Province), Sicily where he courted his future wife Giuseppina (née Domina). They married at the town’s Cathedral of San Nicola di Bari (“Chiesa Madre”) in July 1959.

He was a teacher at Penncrest High School (Rose Tree Media School District) for 25 years, where “Semi”, as he was known, taught French to generations of students including his own daughter Concetta. He retired from teaching in 1988, the year his daughter graduated.

Anthony was an accomplished gardener, carpenter, and photographer; he enjoyed French and Italian literature and art. He was an impassioned opera fan and lover of classical music who was a season ticket holder at the Philadelphia Opera Company for decades. He was an observant Roman Catholic who lived a life centered on faith, family, with a deep sense of Italian cultural pride.

Anthony was preceded in death by his dear mother Concetta (1941); his father Salvatore (1989); his brother Joseph (2010); three sisters-in-law; and four brothers-in-law. He is survived by his beloved and devoted wife of 66 years, Giuseppina, his sister Josephine Oliveto (the late Carmelo); his sister-in-law Apollonia Balsamello (the late Giuseppe); son Riccardo (Lori), daughter Concetta; his grandchildren: Daniel (Ngoc) Seminara and Robert Seminara; his great-grandson Luca Seminara; seven nieces; and one nephew.

Relatives and friends will meet for his viewing and funeral on Friday morning, August 29th from 9:30am to 11:15am at The Catholic Community of Christ Our Light Church, 402 North Kings Hwy., Cherry Hill, NJ 08034. Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 11:30am Friday.  Interment Saints Peter and Paul Cemetery, Springfield, PA.  In lieu of flowers, the family prefers memorial contributions to St. Anthony’s Catholic Orphanage in Messina, Italy (www.basilicaantoniana.it/donazioni/). Arr. by BOCCO FUNERAL HOME of Cherry Hill, NJ.