Loretta Defazio Taylor, known as ‘Beni,” died on August 23, at the age of 87 at Medford Leas. The wife of David L. Taylor, she was the daughter of an Oklahoma farm girl, Serena Blois DeFazio and an Italian immigrant, John DeFazio. She was also the beloved mother of Victoria T. Robertson, Steven J. Taylor, Leslie A. Taylor and Paul D. Taylor, and was predeceased by her son Scott H. Taylor.
Beni met Dave at Merchantville High School. She attended Goucher College and married Dave in 1948. They lived in Moorestown for most of their married life, before moving to Medford Leas. After raising five children, Beni finished her undergraduate degree at Rutgers Camden, majoring in political science. Employed first by Herman Costello, a state legislator, and later by U.S. Senator Frank Lautenberg, she actively engaged in both local and national politics. She served twelve years on the Moorestown Ethical Standards Board, and was frequently active in the Democratic Party.
Beni and Dave had a full social life in Moorestown and traveled extensively. They eventually bought a vacation house in Tuckerton where Dave sailed and Beni indulged her lifelong passion for the beach. Their children and grandchildren greatly enjoyed their vacations with ‘Gran’ and ‘Pop.’
Her husband, four of her children, four grandchildren, Megan T. R. Hurley, Sarah T. Kilgus, Eve T. Altman and Jacob T. Altman, and three great-grandchildren, Benjamin P. Hurley, August L. Hurley, and Calder W. Kilgus, survives Beni. A gathering to celebrate her life will be held at Medford Leas.
