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Joseph Ralph Zitterman, 80, a resident of Albuquerque for 30 years passed away on January 28th, 2010. He was born on July 13th, 1929 in (Sunnyside) Queens, New York, the 2nd of two children of Anna Kollerits and Raphael Zitterman - two German speaking immigrants from Austria who arrived separately, met after arriving in this country, and married in New York City in 1925. Joseph graduated from Franklin K. Lane High school in Queens, NY, in June 1947. In high school, he majored in business and was a member of the basketball team. Following high school, Joseph spent four years in the Navy serving aboard the USS Salem as a Boilerman First Class. Joseph joined the New York City Police Department in 1954 and retired from the force in 1974. He moved to Albuquerque in 1979 where in his early retirement years, he dabbled in oil painting. Joseph was the cook of the family and he continued cooking throughout most of his retirement. He also enjoyed reading and, for decades, completing the NY Times crossword puzzle on a daily basis. Joseph was an active member of the NRA and in 1996, he was nominated to the NRA Legion of Honor. He enjoyed country western music from the 1950's and 60's and three of his favorite artists were Jim Reeves Hank Williams and Johnny Cash. He was an enthusiastic NFL fan and an avid Denver Broncos fan who counted the weeks during the summer until the start of the NFL season. Joseph was preceded in death by his brother William in 1960, his father Raphael in 1961 and his mother Anna in 1988. Joseph is survived by his wife Shirley, his children Eileen DiGiorgio of Las Vegas NV, Sharon Zitterman, William "Butch" Zitterman and Nancy Swass, all of Albuquerque; his grandchildren John Joseph DiGiorgio, Justin Schrader, Melissa, Lisa, and Samantha Zitterman, Gabrielle and Mariah Swass. He is also survived by four great-grandchildren. A Memorial Service will be held on February 6, 2010 at French ~ Lomas at 2:00 p.m. with a reception to follow. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Disabled American Veterans at http://www.dav.org. Please visit our online guestbook for Joseph at www.RememberTheirStory.com French 10500 Lomas Blvd. NE (505) 275-3500
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