Darlene was born in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania to Bette Jane Campbell of Tyrone, PA.
She was raised by her grandmother, Marguerite Elizabeth Lyle of Antis Township, and her step-grandfather, David C. Wolfe, of Altoona. Darlene never knew the identity of her birth father despite a lifelong search to find him.
[Darlene's original birth certificate which had been sealed, was released in October of 2016, five years after her death, which revealed her father's identity, birth location, and date of birth.]
At seventeen, Darlene married William "Bill" Winters and by the age of 24, was raising four young children with him. As a military wife, she lived in D.C./Maryland, Maine, Rhode Island, Virginia, Puerto Rico, California, and Florida. In 1963, their marriage ended in divorce. Also in 1963, a 5th child (her 4th son) was born.
In 1964, Darlene began a job as a waitress and would remain in that career for the next 46 years. It's difficult to fathom a waitress anywhere who loved their job as much as Darlene loved hers. She was adored by her customers and enjoyed a close camaraderie with her co-workers. As a single mom and despite having difficulty making ends meet, she insisted on splitting her daily tips with the bus boy that she worked with.
Darlene loved talking about the townships in Pennsylvania she visited as a child. She also enjoyed fishing with her sons, visiting her daughter in Alaska, cooking, reading, antiques, thrift shops, watching old movies and snuggling with her pets. She enjoyed writing letters and drawing, and had incredibly beautiful, calligraphy-like, penmanship.
Darlene was at her happiest when she was spending time with family.
Her eldest son, Billy, passed away at the end of July 2011 and Darlene sunk into severe depression. She was unable to comprehend losing a child before her own time. She slipped into a coma days after her son's death and died peacefully two weeks later at the age of 77.
Shortly after her death, one of her grandson's and his wife delivered a baby girl who they named after Darlene and the son she had just lost.
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Darlene was born in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania to Bette Jane Campbell of Tyrone, PA.
She was raised by her grandmother, Marguerite Elizabeth Lyle of Antis Township, and her step-grandfather, David C. Wolfe, of Altoona. Darlene never knew the identity of her birth father despite a lifelong search to find him.
[Darlene's original birth certificate which had been sealed, was released in October of 2016, five years after her death, which revealed her father's identity, birth location, and date of birth.]
At seventeen, Darlene married William "Bill" Winters and by the age of 24, was raising four young children with him. As a military wife, she lived in D.C./Maryland, Maine, Rhode Island, Virginia, Puerto Rico, California, and Florida. In 1963, their marriage ended in divorce. Also in 1963, a 5th child (her 4th son) was born.
In 1964, Darlene began a job as a waitress and would remain in that career for the next 46 years. It's difficult to fathom a waitress anywhere who loved their job as much as Darlene loved hers. She was adored by her customers and enjoyed a close camaraderie with her co-workers. As a single mom and despite having difficulty making ends meet, she insisted on splitting her daily tips with the bus boy that she worked with.
Darlene loved talking about the townships in Pennsylvania she visited as a child. She also enjoyed fishing with her sons, visiting her daughter in Alaska, cooking, reading, antiques, thrift shops, watching old movies and snuggling with her pets. She enjoyed writing letters and drawing, and had incredibly beautiful, calligraphy-like, penmanship.
Darlene was at her happiest when she was spending time with family.
Her eldest son, Billy, passed away at the end of July 2011 and Darlene sunk into severe depression. She was unable to comprehend losing a child before her own time. She slipped into a coma days after her son's death and died peacefully two weeks later at the age of 77.
Shortly after her death, one of her grandson's and his wife delivered a baby girl who they named after Darlene and the son she had just lost.
*¨¨*♡*¨¨*♡*¨¨*♡*¨¨*♡*¨¨*♡*¨¨*
