Madeline M. Nawrocki

Madeline "Cissie" Martha (Kercher) Nawrocki passed away on March 23, 2016, two days past her 96th birthday. She was born in Reading, PA, to Morris and Hilda (Schlaybach) Kercher, and predeceased by her husband, Edward T. Nawrocki, in 1977.

She was also predeceased by her sister, Josephine (Kercher) Hinkle, in 2013.

Madeline is survived by a niece, Holly Graff-Culhane, wife of Dennis Culhane, of Lititz, PA. She is also survived by two nephews, Mark Graff, husband of Rebecca, and James Graff, husband of Ainsley; as well as five grand-nieces and grand-nephews: Annie, Witt, James, Charles and Eleanor, all of Tampa, Florida.

Madeline felt blessed to be surrounded by devoted, loving friends and neighbors: Deborah and Alfred Moatz; Michael Moatz; and Rachel (Moatz) Brizek.

She was thrilled by the recent addition of little Penelope Brizek. The companionship and caring friendship and assistance of Deb Orbach, Betty Lehman, Miriam Rhoads, Debbie Knight and Patricia Pyle, along with many others, was something for which Madeline expressed incredible gratitude.

A lifelong member of Advent Lutheran Church, West Lawn, Madeline and Ed were married there in December 1956. She worked for 21 years at Orr & Sembower, Reading, PA, as a Personnel Manager until 1968, then worked for Manufacturers Association of Reading until retirement in 1979. But retirement didn't stop Maddie. She continued to work with the Keystone Chapter of the American Foundry Association every year, by accepting and recording reservations for their annual golf tournament.

Maddie loved to dance and was an avid square- and round-dancer as a member of the Rainbow Strollers and Stardusters for many years, participating into her eighties. She found joy in the world around her, and loved to travel in years past, visiting London, Bermuda, Spain, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, England, Wales and France. She also visited Nova Scotia, several states throughout the United States, and the Pacific Northwest into Canada.

In recent years, she took pleasure in visits from friends and family, and her Saturday night "dates" with Lawrence Welk. Occasional lunches and dinners out, as well as attending concerts, were also a source of delight.

Those to whom Madeline was special will forever see her in the first crocus and forsythia of the spring, feel her in the warmth of the summer sun on their faces, sense her in the scent of a beautiful flower bouquet, think of her when tasting a perfectly ripe peach, feel her dancing along to an Austrian waltz, and hear her in the lilt of a violin concerto, for those were the things from which Madeline derived her daily joy. Maddie saved a cartoon of two senior ladies with the caption: "Instead of people saying 'What a nice old lady,' I want them to say 'I wonder what on earth she's up to now??'" It was that zest for life that defined Madeline. We now wonder with glee, "What in Heaven is she up to now?" Madeline was a member of the Order of the Eastern Star and supported many worthwhile causes in life. That generosity continued with her wish to donate her body upon passing. Her hope was to provide something of value that would be used to help others, especially in the field of scoliosis and osteoporosis.

A memorial service will be announced at a later date. In lieu of flowers, Madeline's wishes were for donations to Advent Lutheran Church, 16 Telford Ave., West Lawn, PA 19609, or to the Reading Musical Foundation, 201 Washington St., Reading, PA 19601, for the "Edward and Madeline Nawrocki Scholarship" for financially needy student percussionists, or to any charity that is meaningful to the donors. The Edward J. Kuhn Funeral Home, 739 Penn Avenue, West Reading, is in charge of arrangements. Online condolences can be recorded at www.kuhnfuneralhome.com.