Big Ang was remembered at the Basilica of Regina Pacis in Brooklyn, NY Feb. 22, with a gathering of her many friends and loved ones, as well as her Mob Wives costars Carla Facciolo, Renee Graziano and Drita D’avanzo who served as her pallbearers. The beautiful eulogy was written by her friends Diane Morton-Gattulo and Vinnie Medungo, which he presented during the service. We have the entire tribute to Big Ang, so keep reading for some amazing stories about the beloved reality star.
At the request of Big Ang’s family and that of Mob Wives creator and producer Jennifer Graziano, HollywoodLife.com is sharing the heartfelt speech in its entirety:
Today we gather to honor and celebrate the person that defined more than the two words “Big Ang,” but rather, Angela Raiola-Murphy, who I shared quite a different relationship with, than most people had.
I guess originally, I was supposed to be part of her team, assisting with this massive operation of being a reality TV star. Suffice to say anyone who knew her wayward nature along with her family, namely her sisters and brothers, they immediately opened this imaginary back door into their private lives, and swept me into their family as one of their own.
I’ll never forget the day, when her sister Janine assigned me to go on what would eventually become one of the first ever appearances that I would accompany her on. It was to a book signing in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. Now I want you to imagine this scene…
We hardly knew anything about each other, and I was told to just show up in her driveway and she would come out. I didn’t even have her cell phone number yet. I thought to myself, “these people are crazy! Some random kid shows up at a high profile celebrity’s house, and no one in their right mind checked into anything about who I was or where I came from…” In her charming and effervescent way, she came down the steps of her home on Wagner Street and greeted me with a Moore cigarette in one hand, and an excessively large bedazzled I-phone in the other. With her sunglasses on and a red streak in her hair she gave me a smirk, and threw the keys at me to AJ’s Escalade that was loaded with over 500 books and said, “Let’s go, you’re driving!”
This would be the first of many adventures that I had the privilege of participating in.
Needless to say, every adventure became bigger and better (no pun intended), and more grandiose from there on out. I remember saying to myself, “What did Janine get me into!” I guess I was the perfect fit for the task of being a social media director, a personal handler (for not just her, because eventually her girlfriends would accompany us on these journey’s, and we all know how fun they are), a valet, a merchandise salesman, a bathroom attendant, a security guard, which worked out quite well considering our very noticeable size differences, her manicure consultant, and one of the brains in any quick witted, fast money making scheme we could come up with. I was even her assistant manager some nights by closing the Monkey and counting the cash after a big night of business and partying. Basically I was, and still am, the young kid who lives at home with his mother and father, and had no one to answer to after being out with Angela from sundown to sunup. My grandmother even called her my fiancée at one point. It was a very committed relationship.
But I digress…
To know Angela was to love Angela. She was not the sentimental and overly affectionate type. In fact that made her uncomfortable if you “cramped her style.” If you were a good time, and fun hearted like her; that was all of the love she needed to share with you. Her actions spoke volumes to explain just how BIG she loved.
Angela was the type to give of herself time, and again. In the very short time of her celebrity coming into her life, she paid it forward more times than anybody I know, probably better than most of today’s A-list names that have much more than she ever did. Charity and humanity were two of the best characteristics and qualities that Angela embodied.
Along with her longtime friend Jennifer Patafio, affectionately known as “Little Jen,” the two formed a beautiful organization called Big Ang’s Angels, which made a difference in the lives of every individual it touched. The mission of this philanthropic effort was to provide aid, and financial relief to those in need. Angela would act quickly upon any and every request that would come her or Jen’s way.
The recipients of her generosity and selflessness were not only Staten Islanders devastated by Hurricane Sandy, but also Brooklynites, extended family members of life long Howard Beach friends, families in the Rockaways, and even some habitants of the Jersey coastline. She personally cooked meals for people, gave clothing to children, drove kids to school, and even drove a truckload of washer and dryers out to those who needed them.
Some other efforts that she made it her business to partake in was to visit, and take students with special needs from the Hungerford School on shopping sprees. One girl in particular referred to Angela as her best friend, after Angela bought her half of the clothing in the Strawberry Store.
She worked extensively on raising funds and awareness toward the fight against breast cancer annually as a champion member of the Doll Face Diva’s Making Strides team. Because of her help, they are one of, if not the TOP fundraising teams in the state of New York for the American Cancer Society.
There wasn’t a charity or cause too big or too small for Angela to lend a helping hand to. She never turned anyone down, unless she was out of town, and still in good faith made a monetary donation to that cause or foundation. Many of times I personally accompanied Angela on long stretch evenings of three paid appearances, and she would stop at a charity event or personal cause, even if it were for just a half hour, un-paid and lend her services of meeting and greeting with fans to raise money and give support.
If someone looking to host an event had no guidance or where with all to put it together, Angela not only opened up her Drunken Monkey to host the event free of charge, but she also called upon Little Jen and her sister Janine to carry out all of the specific details in launching the event. I, too, was always the DJ free of charge for any cause that she believed in. If Angela supported it, we all did!
One of the first encounters I had with Angela was at a meeting in her sister’s home organizing a fundraiser for a little boy named Philip Okapa who eventually passed away from a brain tumor. That’s when I knew that Angela was way more than Big Ang, the reality television star. She did everything in her power to give comfort and aid to this little boy. With the money they raised, they were able to give that child a proper and beautiful burial.