John W. Altadonna of Calverton died at Peconic Bay Medical Center on Dec. 17, 2023. He was 84 years old.
He was born on Oct. 13, 1939, to John and Josephine (née Scirrino) Altadonna and was a graduate of New York School of Printing.
From 1958 to 1960, he served in the U.S. Army as a Specialist IV where he was recognized for his skills as a Marksman, Sharpshooter (Rifle) and in carbines.
On May 19, 1990, he married Madeline Grattan at St. Charles Chapel in Port Jefferson and for the past 34 years they resided in Calverton.
Formerly of Rocky Point, he was a former member of the Rocky Point Fire Department and the Riverhead Republican Club. He was a communicant of St. John the Evangelist R.C. Church in Riverhead and the Knights of Columbus.
He retired from the Suffolk County Department of Aging where he was a neighborhood aide. In his free time, he restored a Vietnam Marine helicopter in Jamesport and a helicopter at the Westhampton Air Base. He also collected 3,000 signatures on petitions for a movie theatre in Riverhead to no avail.
Surviving is his wife, Madeline; children Michael Altadonna, Dara Altadonna, Kristen McGaughey and Erin Kaelin; sister Ninfa Picone of Ridge; five grandchildren Kiara McGaughey, Aislinn McGaughey, Jocelyn Kaelin, Shaelinn McGaughey and Skylar Kaelin; four brothers-in-law Joseph, Thomas, Paul and Philip Grattan; and many nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his brother Joseph Altadonna and sister Gloria Manno.
The family received friends on Dec. 28, 2023, at DeFriest-Grattan Funeral Home in Mattituck, where services were conducted by the Knights of Columbus and Deacon Dan Waloski. The Liturgy of Christian Burial was celebrated on Dec. 29, 2023, at St. John the Evangelist R.C. Church in Riverhead, officiated by Father Larry Duncklee. Interment, with U.S. Army honors, followed at Calverton National Cemetery.
This is a paid notice.