Audrey Elizabeth DeNunzio

Audrey Elizabeth DeNunzio was called to her final home on November 23, 2011. She was 74. A native of Palmerton, Pa., Audrey, her parents Paul and Elizabeth Hadnagy, and her four brothers and sisters, moved to Inglewood, Calif., in 1953. After graduating from Inglewood High School with the class of 1955, she met and eventually married Dr. Frank David DeNunzio on August 6, 1960. The couple moved to Orange, Calif., where Dr. DeNunzio established what was to become a 40-year dental practice in North Orange County and, for Audrey, a lifetime of care, love and dedication to her four children: Michele (born 1964), Angela (1966), Frank David Jr. (1968), and Jennifer (1969). Divorced in 1972, Audrey moved with her four children to Yorba Linda, where the family remained until 1987. During those years she was a fixture in the neighborhood, community and among all who met her as the caring soul who was never without a smile on her face or a helping hand for whomever needed one. A natural beauty, she modeled for a brief time before establishing a cleaning service. Her home was open to all comers. If a neighborhood child couldn't be found, you'd eventually find them at the DeNunzio's, most likely snacking on a treat straight from her very busy kitchen. She and her children were weekly fixtures at St. Martin de Porres Roman Catholic Church in Yorba Linda for the better part of 20 years. Audrey's pride was in her home and children, and was never one to sit still. In later years she operated a B&B near Yosemite, Calif., assisted in her daughter Angela's custom antique store in Laguna Beach, and never stopped creating and crafting. The birth of the first of six grandchildren in 1997 launched a second career as caregiver and loving grandparent. Audrey lived the last seven years of her life with her daughter Michele and her family in Odenton, Md., south of Baltimore. A member of the Church of the Holy Apostles in Gambrills, she built lasting relationships with an entirely new group of friends, who, like many before, saw Audrey as the friendly face with always the right thing to say. A long bout with diabetes was followed by a severe stroke in April of 2011. She never returned to her home in Odenton and passed in the evening of Nov. 23rd, called to God forever. She is survived by her children (Michele Dougherty and her husband, Jeff; Angela Diaz and her husband Rafael; Frank David DeNunzio Jr. and his wife Caroline, and Jennifer DeNunzio); her six grandchildren (Tate Fredlow, 14; Emma Dougherty, 14; Cole Fredlow, 11; Sean Dougherty, 11; Frank David DeNunzio III, 3; and Dominick DeNunzio, 11 mos.); and by her sister Betsy Osborn and brother Stephen Hadnagy. She is predeceased by her parents, her brother Paul Hadnagy II, and her sister Barbara Hurlburt. Donations to the American Diabetes Association in Audrey's memory are asked in lieu of flowers. Please include a notification to mjesdoug@verizon.net so that the family can thank you for your gift.