Denise Campbell

Denise Campbell (nee Vattima)

July 1, 1958 – September 22, 2026

With great sadness, we announce the passing of our beloved mother, grandmother, daughter, sister, aunt, friend, and so much more, after a long and courageous battle with COPD. She fought until the very end, with the same strength and determination that carried her through a life that was not always easy.

Denise was born in Philadelphia and raised in Ridley Park, she attended Ridley High School and spent her life building memories with the people she loved. It was not always easy, but she never let it stop her from living. She truly lived life to the fullest. In many ways, she had a hundred lives.

Denise was a big kid at heart, always ready to have fun, laugh, make memories, and enjoy the simple things in life. She loved the beach, cooking, reading, the pool, tea cooler, spending time with friends, listening to music, tending to her garden, and, of course, watching The Big Bang Theory. She was the maker of our famous Holiday soup that everyone loves and looks forward too.

These simple things brought her happiness and made up so many of the little moments that her family will forever cherish. She loved being surrounded by the people she cared about and had a special love for her cats, treating them as part of the family.

Denise loved with her whole heart, no matter who you were. She was the kind of person who would do something for someone else even when she couldn't do it for herself. Her heart was generous, her love was unconditional, and she had a way of making people feel cared for.

She lived fiercely and unapologetically, always being her truest self and never letting the world take away the joy she found in simply being who she was. She had a spirit that could not easily be broken, and a determination that carried her through some of life's hardest moments. She was strong, independent, loving, and full of life—and she lived it on her own terms.

She leaves behind her beloved children, Michelle Vattima (Tom Beck) and Timothy Vattima (Brittnie); her cherished grandchildren, Chelsie Maiers (Michael), Timothy Vattima Jr and Gracie Faith Vattima; her bonus grandchildren, Olivia and Dean; and her precious great-grandchildren, Ava Rose, Michael, and Thomas Maiers, who brought so much joy and love into her life.

She is also survived by her siblings, Donna McClure (David), Francis Vattima (Sharon), John Vattima (Kathy), and Timothy Vattima (Susan); along with her many beloved nieces and nephews. She also leaves behind her former husband, Thomas Campbell, and her very best friends, Debbie and Betty, who held a treasured place in her heart.

She was deeply loved by her mother, Rosa Vattima, and is predeceased by her father, Timothy Vattima.

Her family and friends will remember her for her kindness, her stubborn strength, her sense of fun, her fierce spirit, and the enormous heart she carried throughout her life. She gave pieces of herself to so many people, and those pieces will live on in everyone who had the privilege of knowing and loving her.

She is now reunited with her Daddy, and we can only imagine that she is already up there causing trouble with her best friend, Teddy, just like old times.

Mom, you fought so hard for so long. You are finally free from the pain.

Fly high, my sweet fairy.

Please watch over us all.

You had a hundred lives, and I just wish you had one more.

I love you more.

A Funeral Liturgy will be held at 11 AM on Saturday, October 3, 2026 at the White-Luttrell Funeral Home, 311 N. Swarthmore Ave., Ridley Park where a visitation will begin at 10 AM.

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts to the Temple Hospital Lung Center at (I will include a direct link here) or checks made payable to "Temple University Hospital" including a note in the memo line stating “Temple Hospital Lung Center” can be mailed to:

Temple Health Institutional Advancement P.O. Box 2890 New York, NY 10116-2890