Neal C. Paccagnella, 78, passed away on Tuesday at Clement J. Zablocki VA Medical Center. Neal was born in Milwaukee on February 2, 1939, and was the son of the late Pasquale and Mary (Nee: Picciolo) Paccagnella.
Neal proudly served in the United States Army in Korea, Japan, Vietnam, and served as Honor Guard with the V.F.W. Post 1391. He retired from the Ladish Company after over thirty years of employment. He co-owned Neal’s Casual Fine Dining. Neal was a longtime dedicated member of Roma Lodge where he coordinated hundreds of weddings. A Harley enthusiast, Neal loved riding his Harley and belonged to the Wisconsin HOG Chapter. Neal also enjoyed cooking and gardening, but above all, he loved his time with his family and attending his grandchildren’s activities.
He will be dearly missed by his children, Kellie (Rick) Smetana, Dean Paccagnella; loving papa to Kasey Lynn Paccagnella, Isabella, Olivia, and Sophia Smetana; great-grandson, Devendra; his fiancée, Lorraine Zacher; her children, Lynn (Robert) Berndt, Lisa Langsdorf, Rebecca (Kyle) Cunningham, Robert Zacher; loving papa to Tyler and Morgan Berndt, Caitlin and Mitchell Langsdorf, Zachary Heiman, Jordy Cunningham, and Robert Zacher; brother, Jack (Beverly) Paccagnella; Aunt Rose Pauli; his canine companions, Vinny and Willie; other relatives and many dear friends. In addition to his parents he was preceded in death by his wife, Patricia “Penny” on February 3, 2005; and his son, Darrell on February 11, 2012.
Funeral services will be held on Tuesday, October 10 at 12 p.m. at the funeral home. Interment with Full Military Honors will follow at the Southern Wisconsin Veteran’s Memorial Cemetery. Relatives and friends may meet with the family Monday at the funeral home from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. and Tuesday at the funeral home from 11 a.m. until time of service at 12 p.m. Donations to the family for a memorial to be established in Neal’s name have been suggested.