- Date Of Birth: April 4, 1958
- Date Of Death: April 3, 2023
- State: New Jersey
Virginia “Virgie” Lipa Mayo, 64 of Jersey City, New Jersey passed away on April 3, 2023, at her home with her loving family by her side. She was born in Lipa City, Batangas, Philippines on April 4, 1958, to the late Pedro Lipa and Candida Gertez of Padre Garcia, Batangas, Philippines. She graduated at Far Eastern University in Manila with Bachelor of Science in Commerce.
She is survived by her husband Nelson T. Mayo, children; Virginia Policarpio (Patrick), Manolito Mayo (Elaine), Liberty Colon (Kevin) and the late Nelson L. Mayo Jr. along with her grandchildren Trinity, Cassius, Lorenzo, and Nelson III. She is a loving sister of Teresita Casteneda, Romulo Lipa, Milagros Perez, Ruben Lipa and the late Danilo Lipa and Alfredo Lipa.
Throughout her lifetime, Virgie touched the hearts of every person she met. Her electric personality made her the life of the party, always first on the dance floor to her favorite line dance. Her strength and courage were inspirational, becoming a role model to many she encountered. Her absolute joy for life and her indomitable spirit made her that perpetual ray of sunshine on your Facebook feed. People were drawn to Virgie’s vivaciousness and humor which allowed her to pick up lifelong friends everywhere she went. She shared her love of travel with her children. First to fill her store, Virgie’s Variety Store in Lipa City with imported goods from Hong Kong and Thailand. To later travelling Europe to procure unique jewelry and handbag pieces to sell at trade shows.
When Nelson and Virgie moved to America with only a luggage and a thousand dollars, she was determined to build a good life for her 4 children. Despite having a college degree, she wore many hats, working as a cashier at a Shop Rite, to cleaning houses, even cooking, and selling Filipino foods on the weekends. She found her niche as a jeweler, becoming a familiar and trusted trader in New York City’s Broadway Diamond District. Her clientele ranged from nurses to doctors to many hospital personnel, hosting private jewelry showings in medical conferences across the United States. The epitome of hustle and grit, Virgie never ceased to dream big and worked tirelessly to manifest the life she dreamed of – a mantra she passed onto her children.
The absolute joy of Virgie’s life was to see the life she had dreamt for her children to come to fruition. She relished witnessing them accomplish life’s milestones from graduating college, to marrying the loves of their lives, to raising their own family. She cherished her role as a grandmother, passing on her love for selling, travelling, and adventures to her beloved grandchildren. She is well known to give tough love but was also the first one to build bridges for her family to come together and settle differences. Through her steadfast and unwavering faith, we knew what resilience and perseverance really looked like.
