Rocco 'ROCKY' Maddalina
March 18, 1937 ~ June 23, 2007
Greece: Saturday, June 23, 2007 at age 70. Survived by his wife, Irene J. Maddalina; son, Mark (Laurie) Maddalina; daughter, Ann Marie (Mark) Wilcox; sisters, Gloria & Anne Maddalina; grandchildren, Julia, Nicky & Katy Maddalina and Jenna Wilcox; niece, Debbie (Vinnie) Pizzo; mother-in-law, Catherine Laskoski; sister-in-law, Betty (Jim) Willer; several cousins; many friends. Rocco is a U.S. Army Veteran and served in the Korean War. He had great love for his family, especially his grandchildren, who were his pride and joy. Rocco had great interest in and a passion for law enforcement, was a professional accordion player, enjoyed music (especially Jazz), loved to take pictures of his family and had a wonderful sense of humor. He will be sadly missed by many.
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Friends may call Wednesday 2-4 & 7-9 P.M. at Vay-Schleich & Meeson Funeral Home, 1075 Long Pond Road. His Funeral Mass will be celebrated Thursday 11:30 A.M. at St. Charles Borromeo Church, 3000 Dewey Avenue.. Interment in Holy Sepulchre Cemetery. Those wishing may make contributions to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, 275 Lake Avenue, Rochester, NY 14608
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Both Michele and I want to extend our deepest sympathy to you Irene and all your family. Rocky was a very special person and a great friend. The memories that we have will be that of a lifetime. Rocky was a very honorable, unselfish and caring person, someone who can affect a person in such a powerful way with his humor and wit. I know that for me he made a great difference in my life and it was not only a pleasure to be around him, but an HONOR to have known him. A sincere farewell to a great man.
Our love forever,
Ralph and Michele DiGiovanni
Dear Irene and fanily,
Please accept my sincere sympathy during this time of loss. I grew to know Rocky during my last 2 years of employment at Greenleaf. He was a wonderful resident and compassionate human being who will be sorely missed.
He was our ‘Mayor’ at Greenleaf and was always looking out for those around him. His funny e-mails and visits to the office will be missed. He touched our lives and the lives of many.
May he rest peacefully in God’s hands and God bless you and your family.
Very Truly Yours,
Julie E. Sanders
Assistant Manager
Greenleaf Meadows
Dear Irene, My heart aches for you & the kids. I am so sorry for your loss. What a dear man & friend your Rocky was.
Dear Mom, Mark and yes, even you my dear Anne Marie… my thoughts and prayers are truly with you. I know in my heart of hearts that DAD is very much alive and well. He continues to laugh as only he can and I feel him embracing me with a love and light that is beyond my ability to put into words. Just please know he does live and he lives free from the trials of this world and embraces all of you even as you read these words. My only regret is that I could not be there to hold you tight. – Your son, brother and well you know… George
Even though I’ve been out of the Rochester area for some time, I still read the local paper once in a while by internet. I was sadden to read that the man who saved my life has passed away. He shall be missed by all whose lives he touched in his special way. To Mark and Irene, I wish I could be there, however, I’m studying outside the country, but know that you are in my thoughts and prayers. Rest in Peace Rocco.
Gloria, Anne and Family,
I am sorry for your lose and the tears of joy and happiness are with you all. May GOD keep him safe and by his right hand. May he also have Rocco look after all his family and friends.
I just happened to go to St.Charles evening mass, and couldn’t believe hearing Rocky’s name, and that he had passed away this week. Irene and family, I am so sorry for your loss, and you are all in my thoughts and prayers. Rocky, rest in peace.
I ‘knew’ Rocky as a figure in my father’s stories. I was so young when first we met – probably pre-school. But he and my dad, Mike, and Uncle Tony were close cousins in their youth. I was so pleased, as an adult, to find him again and actually get to know him a bit through our shared interest in the family tree. His love for family and endless humor were a joy to share.
I used to work at Greenleaf Meadows and knew Rocky for the 10 years I was there, he was such a wonderful, giving and caring man, not to mention a fantastic cook! When my husband was in Iraq, Rocky was always a source of comfort by asking how he was doing, making sure I was ok and sending his funny emails to my husband and well as a care package, that is just how genuinly caring he was. I will never forget him in the way he touched our lives. My deepest sympathies go out to Irene and his entire family.
I will miss the fun and laughs that we have shared since childhood.
Love to all,
Tony
Iam so sorry for your lose. Great guy our heart and thought are with you all.Renee Mark AnnMarie, God Bless you.
Irene & family,
My thoughts and prayers are with you.
Irene and Family,
I was so sorry to hear about Rocky. We met in the Army in Sacramento, CA in early 1956. He soon became a good buddy and we enjoyed many wonderful times together. I can still envision Rocky joking, our playing ball together on the Post baseball team, his entertaining us all with his accordian and, just being a joy to be around. We lost touch but he found me and a couple of the other guys in the 90’s thru his Primefinder Investigative Services. Ever since, we have kept in touch almost daily, primarily via E-Mail. In addition to the multitude of jokes, Rocky would send, he always filled me in on what was happening with him and his family. He was so proud of you Irene, and expressed much love for you, his children, grandchildren, and entire family. You must have many fond memories of him and I hope that they will help you during these days. His was a life of celebration. May he now rest in Peace. Play on Rocky… your many friends will never forget you!!!
Irene and Family: I was saddened to hear of Rockys passing. He was a good friend for many years. I was away on vacation and was unable to come to the wake or service. Please know that my thoughts and prayers are with you and the family. Rocky was a funny man who had a big heart…He will be sadly missed.
My condolences and prayers to you, Irene, Mark , Laurie and all. To say that Rocky was proud of ALL of you is an understatement. I am sure that he is up in heaven right now sharing some of his favorite jokes and emails, while getting to know everyone else around him so that he can introduce all of us when we meet him again. He will probably direct us to the best place to eat / drink when we get there!
My family and I extend our deepest sympathy to Irene and family. It was my honor to know Rocky and work with him at Penfield HS. He always said Good Morning with a smile that never left his face. I will always cherish our talks and emails but most of all our hugs that we shared many times. Rocky was a wonderful man with a heart like no other. I will miss him very much and he will always be dear to my heart. Rocky now you are ‘free’ so fly high and shine bright. I will look up to you as I always did and see your star every night. God Bless.
My thoughts are with you, Irene-Rocky was a beautiful Man-He was so kind! loved the ‘ Naz’ students.
God be with you & your family,sincerely,saundra ehman
Our deepest sympathy for your loss.We’ll always remember him for the wonderful person he was.
Our prayers are with Rocco’s familyl
All of us here in Boise, Idaho who love and miss our dear Rocco. God Bless
Rich, Mary Lou, Rick, Betty, Carolyn, Fred, Rob, Kathy, Megan, Melissa, Ashley, Angie, Arica, Shelby,& Kira.
Rest in Peace Rocky, you fought a good fight my brother. You will live on in the hearts of all who knew and loved you.
Roc,
You are a giant among men, and you shall never be forgotten. Simply irreplaceable as a friend, father-in-law and grandparent. Love you and miss you so much already.
Rocco!
I will miss your emails as they always brought a smile – your sense of humor will forever live in my memory. Thank you for being a friend.
rocky and i go back to the grade school days. we also played in bands together. i never ever have seen him when he wasn’t up beat. i was sorry to see him leave phoenix. he made my 50th birthday party a real treat. i’ll never forget you rocky and i hope my sense of humor lasts as long as yours.
Rocky was an energetic and capable Director of Security at Nazareth College
with whom I worked closely as the
College’s chief academic officer in the
1980’s. My condolences to Irene, Mark,
Mary Ann, and all the family. He was a
grand person!
Rocky,
The laughter you brought into all of our lives will continue to keep your spirit alive. May God Bless and forever keep you in his care.
Rocky, although I no longer reside in Rochester, for some reason I decided to read the online D&C today and noticed your name. Must be a reason for that, my friend. I just found your later to me dated 6/85 after our finishing the United Way Campaign at the College. I will always remember the wit, the ridiculous jokes and the spirit you brought to that year’s campaign. It was such a pleasure working with you to raise money. Now, I’ll await the next time our paths shall cross. May The God who created you be the God who now holds you dearly in his arms. My condolences to your family.
Rocky, our graduating class will never be the same. we will miss your smiling face & of course your accordion. May God Bless you & keep you in his arms. Love Frank & Joanne Formicola
Rocky,
Thank you for the many years of laughter, friendship, support, and kindness you’ve demonstrated over the past twenty five years. You’ve been an inspiration, a mentor, a role model and most importantly a friend. I became friends with your son, Mark, and came to know you, your family, and your friends over the course of time.
I will never forget your generosity, your positive outlook and your awesome cooking! My God keep you safe and bless you and all those whose lives you’ve touched!
God Bless! We’ll miss you!
So glad we had that time together on your visit to DC. What a nice visit we had. I’ll always remember how you made us all laugh and how you were the keeper of our memories with all the family photos you recorded, restored and shared. Much Love, Darcy
To Family & Friends….and Rocky
From the first time that I was introduced to Rocky I could see that his personality and humor was the main drawing card of his circle of friends and family. I (Greg) did not have the opportunity of knowing Rocky in the early years of Norton Street , like Kathy. But I which I had. Even if you had a bad day, Rocky had a way of making you feel good and everything would be well again. Rocky and I had lunch one day at Roncos. Even though we had just meant each other 3 weeks earlier-it was as if we knew each other all our life. We had a great conversation and time that day. And that’s the way he was and will be remembered in our hearts.
Kathy and I will never forget how Rocky brought old friends back together again. He will be truly missed.
We are very pround to call Rocky a dear friend.
God Bless and Keep
Love,
Kathy & Greg Sheldon
You will be missed at the Tuesday morning breakfasts. Rest in peace.