It is with the heaviest of hearts that the family of Irene Mimnaugh announces her passing at the age of 80.

Irene was born and raised in Elizabeth in 1944 and moved to Kenilworth during middle school. She spent the last 50 years residing in Linden on Brook Street with neighbors who became family.

Irene graduated from Kean University in 1966 with a degree in elementary education and started her career as a teacher in South Plainfield the same year where she taught for six years until the birth of her daughter. After staying home to be with her daughter when she was little, Irene then started as a substitute teacher in the Linden Public School district and taught in several schools. Irene spent over two decades as a second grade teacher at School 4 where the staff were like another family to her before retiring in 2007. Irene was a big card giver and was proud to have sent cards congratulating two former students who became principals in the district in recent years.

Irene loved to travel and her home. She was an avid reader and shared her love for books as a volunteer for Friends of Linden Library. Irene loved Johnny Mathis, seeing him in concert countless times, and Bon Jovi too. Irene enjoyed going to Broadway (her favorite was Les Miserables) and local theater. Irene was a great cook, famous for her fried chicken. She loved to cook, especially for the holidays and decorate for Christmas and took such time and care with wrapping presents. Her love for the holidays makes her passing right before Christmas all that much harder. Irene also was a diehard baseball fan, watching any and every game, rooting for her beloved Mets and for anyone playing against the Yankees.

Her biggest heartache was losing her husband of 29 years, Francis "Red" Mimnaugh in 1995. One solace in her passing is she will be reunited again with him as well as her parents, Joseph and Irene Limone, her brother Joseph Limone, and her aunts, uncles, cousins and friends who she sadly lost over the years.

She leaves behind her heartbroken daughter, her "Rory to her Lorelai," Nicole Cody of Lawrenceville, who will forever miss her and her son-in-law Kenneth Cody who she loved dearly.

The light of her life was her grandson, Colin. Irene had never been happier then when Colin was born.  Her favorite role in life became being Colin's Grammy. She was a huge help caring for Colin when he was little, traveling an hour twice a week to watch Colin while Nicole and Ken worked, which she did with joy, calling the miles she accumulated on her car "Colin miles." They had a special bond that never waned during his teenage years. You knew how much she loved him when one year she actually paid for him to go to Yankees camp (she hated the Yankees). She was even glad when he later became a Phillies fan, even though they are big rivals of the Mets, and would even root for them as it made Colin happy.

She also leaves behind her best friend since kindergarten, Sande Peterson. Over the last 75 years, they shared so much love and laughter and tears too as they faced so much together. One of the best gifts Irene ever gave Nicole was making Sande her godmother. She was always there for both Irene and Nicole and there was no truer friend than Sande.

Irene is also survived by her sister-in-law, Mary Ann Mimnaugh, who was more like a sister to her, and many nieces, nephews, cousins and dear friends.

Her family would like to thank the doctors, nurses and staff at the John Theurer Cancer Center who gave them more precious time with her. They also would like to thank all the medical staff who did all they could this past year including ones at the Fresenius Kidney Care in Linden and the Birchwood Rehabilitation Center in Cranford who were very compassionate and caring in her final days.

Nicole also would like to thank her bosses at her workplaces, Kim McNear of Anchor House, and Chris Woolley of Every Child Valued, for their support and giving her such flexibility to be able to spend this year caring for her mother. She is also forever grateful for the family and friends who called or stopped in and checked in on her mom and those who supported her during the most difficult time of her life.

Although she did not become a teacher, Nicole followed a similar path to her mom, spending her life working in nonprofits that serve children and asks that, in lieu of flowers, that you make a donation in memory of her mom to Every Child Valued, through their website at www.everychildvalued.org or by mail at PO Box 6693, Lawrenceville, NJ 08648.

Visitation will be held in the Leonard-Lee Funeral Home, 301 E. Blancke Street Linden on Sunday, January 5, 2025 from 2pm to 6pm. On Monday the funeral will begin in the funeral home at 9am followed by a Funeral Mass in St. Elizabeth Church at 10am. Interment will follow in Cloverleaf Memorial Park Woodbridge.