Denise E. (Maddox) Polignone

December 15, 1937 - June 27, 2023

Denise E. Polignone, 85, Duncansville, passed away Tuesday night after she fought a long hard battle with dementia at the Altoona Center for Nursing Care.

She was born in Lewisham, England to parents Frank and Elsie (Vallis) Maddox on December 15, 1937. On April 27, 1958 she married Frank Polignone in Lewisham, England, he preceded her in death on July 16, 2019.

Surviving is her son Frank S. (Brenda) Polignone of Duncansville and daughter Michele (Richard) Bridges of Lakeland, Florida; five grandchildren Mandy (Andy) Cocciardi, Jennifer (Edmond) Obodai, Lauren (Keven) Lohr, Morgan Bridges and Gabriella Bridges; sisters-in-law: Angie Batrus and Mary Salome; eight great grandchildren; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Preceded in death by her beloved sister, Joan Smith, England.

Denise was a child living in England during World War II, surviving not only a Nazi bombing where an undetonated bomb landed in her bedroom as her mother pushed her out the window to escape. But as a young child she was part of Operation Pied Piper, designed to try to keep children safe beyond German bombing. She, along with thousands of other children living in the city, were loaded onto trains and sent to live away from their families with strangers in the British Countryside.

After meeting Frank at an Airforce Base in Margate, England, they moved to Altoona to start a life together in the United States. Denise spent decades working for Riverside/BI-LO in the meat department and after retiring from the grocery store, she went to work at Lowe's in the garden center. She loved gardening, playing pinochle with her card club, bowling, bingo and eating at restaurants with her girls.

Friends will be received from 5-7 pm on Monday, July 10, 2023 at The Stevens Mortuary, Inc., 1421 Eighth Ave. Altoona. Committal prayers will be at Calvary Cemetery on Tuesday, July 11, 2023 at 10:30 am

Condolences may be made at www.stevensfamilyfuneralhomes.com or Stevens Family Funeral Homes Facebook page.