Anna DeMaggio
December 7, 1921 – August 9, 2019 Anna, Dolly, Rose Granelli DeMaggio, loving wife, mother, Nana, and Great-Nana died on Friday, August 9, 2019 at Legend Oaks Healthcare Facility in Kyle, TX. She was preceded in death by her husband, Joe; grandchild, Andrea; parents, Peter and Maria Granelli; sisters, Vera and Alma; and brother, Andrew.
Anna met Joe in 1940 while he was working as the dancing usher and she was the candy girl in a movie theater in Jamaica, NY. They fell in love and were engaged in 1941. Joe was drafted in 1942 and sent to Europe, while Anna worked in a local factory sewing parachutes which were supplies for our troops. She and her lifelong friend, Adele, also visited the wounded soldiers hospitalized on Long Island and Sheepshead Bay. They made gift packages for the soldiers, called their families, and wrote letters for them. After 3 ½ years, Joe returned safely from the war. They were married on November 11, 1945. After Joe joined the NYC police department, they had two children, Joanne and Paul; and Anna started her teaching career at St. Anthony’s in South Ozone Park from 1958 until 1968, when they decided to move to Albuquerque, NM. She continued teaching at Holy Ghost School until she retired in 1984, in addition to spending time with family and grandchildren, Michael and Jennifer. Anna also started traveling for fun with her three buddies, Adele, Henrietta and Ethel. She loved dancing with Joe, family, the ocean, hunting, traveling and golf. She touched so many lives during her 97 years among us. She always said how much she enjoyed her life and her extended family. The last three years were spent living in Driftwood, TX, where she could sit in her rocking chair, drink her glass of red wine, and look for deer. Anna will be missed more than she could ever know, but will always be remembered for her laugh, the joy she found in life, and being called Great Nana. She wrote this so that it told her story the way she wanted to be remembered. Her extended family will also remember all those wonderful Italian dinners and celebrations that brought together all her relatives and friends from all over the country.
Anna is survived by daughter, Joanne and partner, Mike; son, Paul and wife, Jan; grandchildren, Michael and wife, Michelle, Jennifer and husband Matt, Stan and wife, Monica, and Jeff and wife, Sabrina; great-grandchildren, Jordyn, Elayna, Vivian and Levi, Sophia, Francesca, Maya, and Kayla; and many nieces, nephews and their families; and wonderful friends, all who she cherished dearly. She and Joe are dancing together again.
A Rosary will be recited Thursday, August 22, 2019, 5:00 p.m., at FRENCH – Wyoming. Friends may visit beginning at 4:00 p.m. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Friday, August 23, 2019, 10:00 a.m., at Risen Savior Catholic Community, 7701 Wyoming Blvd. NE. Interment will follow at Gate of Heaven Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, Anna requested donations to St. Jude’s Research Hospital. Please visit our online guestbook for Anna at www.FrenchFunerals.com