Madeline Pamela (Burns) Stinson

Madeline Pamela (Burns) Stinson, aged 97, of Peekskill, New York, and more recently of Raleigh, North Carolina, passed away peacefully on Valentine’s Day, February 14, 2024.

Madeline was born in Peekskill, New York to Edward Burns and Madeline (Dugan) Burns on October 26, 1926. She attended Peekskill Schools and achieved her High School Diploma at age 65. She married S. Joseph Stinson on September 26, 1953.

Madeline worked for the New York Telephone Company as a telephone operator when operators connected calls from a central location. She was an excellent switchboard operator; she was promoted to Supervisor and worked for the company for fifteen years. Once her children were school-age, she joined the Ronald Goldsand Agency as a closing scheduler in Peekskill and worked for Macy’s in her later years in the Housewares Department. Madeline volunteered at St. Patrick’s Church in Verplanck as the treasurer of the Lady’s Guild and was a member of the Ancient Order of Hibernians. Madeline loved to read, and never missed an issue of the Sunday New York Times. She was also an avid knitter, making many baby sweaters for her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She was known for her excellent potato salad and mashed potatoes, spaghetti and meatballs, and baked beans! She enjoyed hosting the annual Kite Flying Contest for her twins’ birthday and creating lasting memories for all who attended, mostly family. Madeline loved gardening and beautiful roses. She had many varieties of roses at her Verplanck home. She also loved playing bridge with her friends, Jane Morabito, Mary Flaherty, and Helen Curran. These games continued well into her nineties.

Madeline was predeceased by her husband, Joe, her parents, her brother, John E. Burns, and his wife Dorothy, and a sister, Mary Catherine Burns; along with sister-in-law Charlee Burns (Edmund).  Other family members that predeceased her were Edward and Virginia Stinson, Raymond and Isabel Stinson, Thomas and Catherine Stinson, and her grandson-in-law Bryce Jensen.

Madeline is survived by her five children: Kathleen Stinson Buchanan (David), Robert Stinson (Diane), Pamela Stinson Burns (Joseph), William Stinson (Wendy), and Mary Ann Stinson Ottaviano (Ralph). She is also survived by her brother, Edmund Burns of Stamford, Connecticut.

Madeline will be missed by her fourteen grandchildren: Kristin Burns Jensen, Karin Burns, Mary Colleen Buchanan Pellegrino, Kelly Ann Stinson Baty, Peter Burns, Ryan Burns, David Buchanan III, Katie Lynn Stinson Battlo, Christine Grace Cook, Patrick Burns, Joseph Stinson, Shannon Stinson, Margaret (Maggie) Stinson, and Christopher Ottaviano.

She was blessed with eleven great-grandchildren and fifteen nieces and nephews. She will be missed by her favorite canines Enzo Ferrari Ottaviano and Lucy Burns. Madeline was an animal lover, and she especially loved her tuxedo cat, Fluffy Nelson.

A Memorial Mass will be celebrated at the Holy Name of Jesus Cathedral, 715 Nazareth Street, Raleigh, NC on Friday, February 23, 2024, at 10:00 am.

A Funeral Mass in New York will be held at the convenience of the family. In place of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Bennett Strong Foundation in honor of her great-grandson Bennett Anthony Pellegrino. (www. Bennettstrong.org)

Arrangments by Clancy Strickland Wheeler Funeral Home and Cremation Service, Wake Forest, NC.(919-556-7400)

www.cswfuneralhome.com