Thelma I. Roche Bridgewater, NJ Thelma Roche, 88, passed away on Monday, May 2, 2022 at Sunrise Assisted Living in Bridgewater. NJ. Born in Brooklyn, but raised as a young child in Manhattan on Mulberry Street, Thelma resided in Dyker Heights, Brooklyn for most of her life before moving to Sunrise three years ago. Thelma graduated from Cathedral High School in New York City. She held many interests in her full life. Like any good Italian mother, she loved to cook, be it stuffed artichokes, or her meatball lasagna. But she was a versatile cook too, especially for the Irish side of her family who enjoyed her kidney stew and great Irish coffees. Many in the family benefitted from her crocheting, from baby blankets to afghans. Besides raising two boys, she held jobs in both lithography, where she managed a printing department, and later worked as a dental assistant. She shared special interests with her husband as a world traveler, visiting a myriad of countries including, India, China, Australia, Egypt, and Argentina. Besides being world travels they were avid Broadway theater fans, attending numerous plays for a good part of their lives together. She loved fun gatherings and parties, and in their later years, both she and Tom Sr. loved to attend her son's annual Halloween party, always in creative costumes often based on their extensive travels. In her quieter moments she was a prolific reader, from biographies, to novels, to plays. And of course, one thing Thelma especially enjoyed was spending quality time with her family, especially her grandchildren. She is preceded in death by her beloved parents, Rose and Guido Guidi, her sister, Zilda Canova and her loving husband, Thomas J. Roche Sr.,( Big Tommy) of 58 years (2011). Surviving are her two dear sons, Thomas Roche Jr. (Little Tommy) and wife Lucia Roche of Bridgewater, NJ; Kevin Roche of Westchester, NY; two cherished grandsons, Shaun and Erick, and many loving nieces and nephews, along with numerous friends. Memorial contributions may be made in Thelma's memory to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital 501 St. Jude PL Memphis, TN 38105 https://www.stjude.org/. Committal is private. An internment will be held at a later date at Arlington National Cemetery where she will be laid to rest next to her decorated husband, Tom.