Yolanda Caperna D’Agostino of the House of The Good Shepherd, Hackettstown died peacefully on the 12th day of October 2020. She was 101 years young.

Yolanda is survived by her niece, Frances “Fran” Tomeo and Jack Fornaro of Oxford, New Jersey, her nephew, Steven A. Tomeo and his wife Mary Ellen Dalton Tomeo of Pomfret Center, Connecticut, three (3) grandnieces: Janelle Gray McAleer and her husband, Karl McAleer and their two children, Jessica and Tyler of Belvidere, New Jersey; Andrea M. Tomeo and her daughters, Molly Castano and Taylor Castano of Thompson, Connecticut; Christina E. Tomeo of Thompson, Connecticut; a grandnephew, Stefano A. Tomeo, Jr. of Irvine, California; and her husband’s niece, Grace Zaganberg of Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania.

Yolanda was born February 20, 1919 in Hackettstown, the daughter of the late Augusto and Talinda DeSantis Caperna. She graduated from Hackettstown High School in 1937, and from the Wilfred Beauty Academy, Newark, New Jersey. After graduation she went to work with her sister, Leta Caperna Tomeo, at Leta’s Beauty Salon on Main Street in Hackettstown.
“Yo,” as she was affectionately called, loved dancing winning several medals at the Harvest Moon Ball in New York City during the 1930s. She enjoyed sports especially golf and watching the New York Yankees. In her later years she never missed watching or listening to Yankee baseball often into the early morning hours when they played on the West Coast. Sundays in the fall and winter were reserved for NFL football. She loved watching golf on TV. In her 40s and 50s she was an avid trap and skeet shooter winning a number of State and local events and competing throughout the Atlantic States.

On May 17, 1947, “Yo” married August “Gig” D’Agostino at St. Mary’s RC Church in Hackettstown. The then young couple built a home in Budd Lake, New Jersey where she was the owner of Yolanda’s Beauty Lounge, a business that she operated for 60 plus years. “Gig” also worked there until his death. She and “Gig” also operated several discount shoe stores during the 1950s.

“Yo” retired and stopped driving her car when she was 91 years old. She loved her work and customers and she loved hearing from them after she retired.
Yolanda and her husband “Gig” were avid outdoor persons. They had a barn on their property and a fenced in area where they kept as many as three horses. They also raised English Setters attending field dog trial competitions with them throughout the Northeast. They loved riding their horses, going fishing, hunting and trap shooting. “Gig” died in 1973, while judging a field dog trial competition and after that she became an avid golfer in her 50s. She was an active player into her 70s.

She was also preceded in death by her parents, and her sisters Mary Caperna Rotondo and Leta Caperna Tomeo both of Hackettstown, along with her grandniece, Jessica Gray of Oxford, New Jersey.

The family wishes to express their deepest gratitude to The House of The Good Shepherd for the outstanding care given Yolanda during her time there and to Hackettstown Hospital for its wonderful care over the years.

Family and friends will honor and remember Yolanda’s life by gathering for a memorial service at The Cochran Funeral Home located at 905 High Street, Hackettstown, New Jersey on the 16th day of October, 2020 at Cochran Funeral home at 11:00 am with interment at Hackettstown Union Cemetery following the service.

Visitation will take place Friday, October 16, 2020 from 10:00 am – 11:00 am at Cochran Funeral Home.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions in honor of Yolanda can be made to Hackettstown Hospital, The House of the Good Shepherd, The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), and The American Cancer Society or to a charity of your choice.