Obituary of Nancy B. DeBerardinis

Nancy Bonita DeBerardinis (née Pontillo) passed away peacefully November 22, 2020.

She was born on August 25, 1934 at Chester Hospital and attended Marcus Hook Elementary School and graduated from Ridley Park High School in 1952. She married her sweetheart Caesar in 1958 and they lived in Boothwyn in the house that Caesar built for 60 years! Nancy raised 4 children, Joe, Marie, Nancy and Fran. She loved her daughters-law, JoAnne and Colleen and son-in-law Bill like her own. She adored her 7 grandchildren, Eric, Ryan, Elizabeth, Nick, Jackie, June and Alivia. She is preceded in death by her parents, Rosario and Ida Guinto Pontillo, and her brother, Carl Pontillo.

Nancy's happy place was the beach! She loved watching the grandkids ride the waves and boogie board. The perfect beach day always ended with a big dinner and mom's favorite snacks, hush puppies and ice cream. Always the supportive and proud grandmom Nancy rarely missed her grandchildren's plays, sports games, recitals or school activities. Nancy was a skilled quilter and was an active member of Brandywine Valley Quilters. Many of her quilts went to hospitalized children or children in crisis. Every quilt she made was beautiful! She LOVED to garage sale and knew how to find a treasure for a quarter! Nancy was one of the founding members of "Porch Club" where neighbors gathered to chat and catch up. She always enjoyed that part of the day. She was a great cook and made the best meatballs and manicotti. Every summer Caesar and Nancy spent hours canning hundreds of jars of tomatoes from Caesar's garden. Those jars of sauce were legendary!

Nancy and Caesar enjoyed many activities. They loved spending time at the fishing beach. Sitting on the tailgate of the truck, they both waited for a bite and with Caesar as her mentor she caught her fair share of bluefish! They both loved Sunday dinners. It was a time of eating, telling stories and laughing at bad jokes. Nancy was always smiling, always positive and always sweet. She laughed a lot and had a great sense of humor. Everyone who knew her loved her!! She was the epitome of a loving wife, mother and grandmother, cousin and friend.She was deeply loved and will be greatly missed by family and friends.

She was an AMAZING, LOVING little woman with a heart as big as the world itself! 

There will be a visitation held for Nancy on Saturday November 28 from 9:15-10:15AM at St. John Fisher Catholic Church, 4225 Chichester Ave, Upper Chichester, PA. followed by a 10:30AM funeral mass. Interment, Immaculate Heart of Mary Cemetery, Linwood, PA. The funeral mass will be livestreamed precisely at 10:30AM, (Please scroll to the bottom of the obituary at 10:30AM and refresh your screen). Please remember to wear a mask and practice social distancing if you plan on attending services for Nancy. Donations in Nancy's memory may be sent to Michigan State University and designate to the Anita Giampalmi Endowed Scholarship (AB1150) Mail to MSU University Advancement, 535 Chesnut Rd. Room 300, East Lansing, MI 48824-9902. Online condolences may be made by visiting (www.paganofuneralhome.com).