Joseph S. DiMaggio Sr.

OREGON-DiMaggio, Joseph S. Sr., age 88 , of Oregon, passed away at home on Sunday Aug. 5, 2012, surrounded by his family. Joe was born on July 8, 1924 in St. Paul, Minn., the third son of eight children of Steven and Rosalia DiMaggio. The family moved to Madison when Joe was a teenager where he sold bananas door to door with his pal Fluffy Romano and little brother Sam. Joseph was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1943, and trained as a heavy machine-gun operator with the 314th Infantry Regiment, 79th Division. He landed in Normandy, France on Omaha Beach at D+5. His final assignment was in Cherbourg, France as an MP where he guarded and befriended German POW's in the aftermath of war. He was honorably discharged and returned to Madison. In his thanks to God Almighty for having survived the devastation of a world war, he made a pilgrimage from Madison, to the Basilica of the National Shrine to Mary at Holy Hill in Hubertus, a distance of 72 miles. He married Audrey Brockman on Sept. 25, 1948, and eventually populated their household with 14 healthy children. Joe was a businessman and mechanic and owned several gas stations in the Madison area. Joseph Sr. is survived by his children, Joseph Jr. (Gerri) DiMaggio, Rosalie (Tim) Haas, Mary DiMaggio, Michele (Mike) Nelson , Chuck (Tracy) DiMaggio, Lucia (Rick) LaPerle, Bernadette (John) Baltzer, Jean (Rock) Trainor, Monica (Phil) Mountford, Mark (Dar) DiMaggio, Greg DiMaggio, Audrey (Steve) Fiore, Patricia(Doug) Zander; brothers, Alphonse and Sam (Beverly) DiMaggio; sister, Jenny (Peter)Castagna; 30 grandchildren; 31 great grandchildren; many nieces and nephews; and other family. Joseph was preceded in death by his wife, Audrey; son, Paul; grandson, Zachary Baltzer; his parents; brother, Chuck; and sisters, Patricia, Shay and Mary. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at HOLY MOTHER OF CONSOLATION CATHOLIC CHURCH, 651 N. Main Street, Oregon, at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Aug. 9, 2012. Burial will follow at Resurrection Cemetery with military honors being conducted. Visitation will be held at the church from 9 a.m. until the time of Mass on Thursday. The family would like to thank the staff at St. Jude Hospice and the staff at the VA hospital in Madison who were all so kind and compassionate to him as he neared the end. Cemetery: Burial will follow at Resurrection Cemetery with military honors being conducted. Visitation will be held at the church from 9 a.m. until the time of Mass on Thursday. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at HOLY MOTHER OF CONSOLATION CATHOLIC CHURCH, 651 N. Main Street, Oregon, at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Aug. 9, 2012.