Maria Pacholok

Maria Pacholok, age 76, passed away on July 31, 2023. She was the beloved wife of the late Jaroslaw “Jerry” Pacholok (1940-2017), a beloved sister to Katherine (nee Jasinsky) John Bodnar and Olga Jasinsky, a loving aunt to Stephanie (nee Bodnar ) Darren Reist, loving “cha cha” to John Pacholok, Mary (nee Pacholok) Mark Garbacik, Anna (nee Pacholok) Christopher Morgan and grand “cha cha” to their daughters, Kayla (nee Garbacik) Stacy Starr, Marissa (nee Garbacik) Bryan Wilke, Olivia Garbacik and Sophia Morgan. Maria also recently became a great, grand “cha cha” to Skylar and Kamryn Starr and to Waylon and Annabelle Wilke, whom she never had the opportunity to hold and shower with love. She was a friend to many. Maria was born on August 10, 1946, in post-war Germany and came to the shores of the United States through Ellis Island at the age of three with her parents, Alexander and Zofia (nee Onufrak) Jasinsky and baby siter Katherine. Maria remembered the transatlantic journey, routine ship drills and often spoke of being comforted by the captain during one of the drills. Maria thrived in her new country and excelled at St. Katherine’s Catholic grammar school in Wheeling West Virginia. In 1959, her family moved to Chicago Illinois, where she completed her grammar school education at St. Mary’s on Chicago’s South side. Maria attended and graduated from Gage Park High School at the top of her class in 1964. She excelled in Latin, science, and business administration, which prepared her for many different career paths. During a very difficult time, Maria became a second mother to her youngest sister, Olga, when their mother died tragically of cancer in 1965. Maria met her husband, Jerry, in late 1965 and they were married on October 28, 1967. They had been married for 49 years. Maria and Jerry initially settled in Oak Lawn IL and later in Downers Grove IL. Their home became a haven for family gatherings, rife with Ukrainian traditions, particularly at Christmas and Easter. Maria and Jerry both loved to entertain family and friends. They both enjoyed cooking Ukrainian foods. Maria would spend days making a walnut torte, whose recipe was passed down from her mother. It was a work of art that she took great pride in. If it wasn’t perfect, it would get scrapped, and she would start all over again until it was perfect. Maria and Jerry were both proficient scuba divers and frequently took vacations to exotic beach destinations, such as the Bahamas, Jamaica, Cozumel, Honduras, Cancun, Cayman Islands, Belize, and Curacao. Maria worked at Argonne National Laboratories and was a highly regarded executive assistant to a several recognized scientists. Highly skilled at word processing, she was formally acknowledged for being able to prepare scientific publications and patent applications having long scientific formulas. After working at Argonne for 25 years, Maria and Jerry elected to retire. Their love of warm weather and sandy beaches drew them to move to Tampa, Florida in 1998. With this move, Maria and Jerry gave their family members a beautiful, relaxing respite from colder Northern winters. Shortly after settling in Tampa, Maria took a part-time job at Publix, where she would greet and prepare a new recipe for customers to sample. Customers would often go to the store just to chat with her. She greatly enjoyed this job, meeting and talking to people. She was widely known in her Westchase subdivision as the Publix “food lady”. When not working, Maria and Jerry enjoyed retirement at their home in Tampa with long days at the beach and relaxing in their pool. Maria and Jerry were active parishioners at the Nativity BVM parish in Orland Park, IL and later at The Epiphany of Our Lord in St. Petersburg FL. Maria loved her Ukrainian heritage and was strong in her Catholic faith. She now sleeps in the arms of God’s everlasting love in His kingdom of heaven. She will be greatly missed by her family and friends. Visitation for Maria to be held Saturday, August 5, 2023, from 8:30am until 10:30am at Muzyka & Son Funeral Home, 5776 W. Lawrence Ave., Chicago 60630. Funeral Service to be held at 11:30am at Saints Volodymyr and Olha, 739 N. Oakley Blvd., Chicago 60612. Interment to follow at St. Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic Cemetery. For more information please call (773)545-3800.

Maria Pacholok

August 10, 1946 - July 31, 2023