Skook News Obituaries: September 22nd, 2020
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Lucretia I. Christman, 92, Girardville passed away peacefully on Monday at Schuylkill Center, Pottsville.
Born in Girardville, she was a daughter of the late Francis and Elizabeth Davies McKeon. She was employed by Wyeth Laboratories until her retirement.
Lucretia was a member of the former St. Joseph’s Church, Girardville now St. Charles Borromeo Parish. She was a member of the Girardville Red Hat Society, the ladies AOH daughters of Erin Div. 18, the Girardville Pride and Senior Citizens. She enjoyed traveling and dancing.
In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her son James Christman; her daughter Patricia Christman; three brothers: Jack, Francis, William, Robert McKeon.
Lucretia had an immense love for her family and is survived by her two daughters, Cynthia and her husband Phil Piergallini, Spring Hill, FL and Jackie Christman, Girardville; her son Francis and his wife Susan Christman, Chesterfield, VA; her sister, Elizabeth “Betty” Moran, Girardville; her nine grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren; several nieces and nephews.
Private funeral services and interment will be held at the convenience of the family.
----------------------------------------Margaret L. "Marge" (Vislusky) Chesonis, 70, of Shenandoah Heights, passed away on Sunday morning, September 20, 2020, at the home of her daughter, Beverly Labosky, in Shenandoah Heights.
Born in Shenandoah, on March 13, 1950, she was a daughter of the late Anthony and Violet (Dulsky) Vislusky.
Marge was a 1967 graduate of the former J.W. Cooper High School, Shenandoah.
Prior to her retirement, she was employed at Ateeco Inc., Mrs. T's Pierogies, Shenandoah. Earlier in life, she was employed at the former Alma Dress Co., Shenandoah.
Marge was a member of Divine Mercy Parish, Shenandoah, and the former St. George's Church. She was a great baker and enjoyed gardening, but above all, she cherished the time spent with her family, especially her grandchildren.
Preceding her in death, in addition to her parents, were her husband, Alexander F. "Alex" Chesonis, on Feb. 8, 2018; her daughter, Angela Chesonis; four sisters, Rose Ann Pribish, Dolores Vislusky, Maryann Polaconis and Janet Palmer; one brother, Anthony P. "Tony" Vislusky.
Surviving are her daughter, Beverly Labosky and her husband, Michael, of Shenandoah Heights, with whom Marge resided; her son, David Chesonis, of Shenandoah and his fianceé, Susan Smith; four grandchildren, Melissa Chesonis and Nathan, Sydney and Morgan Labosky; three great-grandchildren, Lilliana, Gabriella and Brayden; one sister, Carol Howchick and her husband, John, of Shenandoah; two additional brothers-in-law, James Palmer, of New Boston and Joseph Polaconis, of Ohio; one sister-in-law, Helen Vislusky, of Shenandoah Heights; nieces, nephews and cousins.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Friday, September 25, 2020 at 9:30 a.m. in Divine Mercy Church, 232 W. Cherry St., Shenandoah, with Monsignor Ronald C. Bocian, pastor, as the celebrant. Interment will follow in Our Lady of Dawn Cemetery, Shenandoah Heights. A visitation will be held on Friday morning from 8:30 until 9:30 a.m. in Divine Mercy Church.
Walukiewicz-Oravitz Fell Funeral Home, 132 S. Jardin St., Shenandoah, is in charge of the arrangements.
----------------------------------------James S. "Lap" Nye, Sr., 80, of Wiconisco, passed away suddenly early Tuesday, September 22, 2020.
Jim was born in Wiconisco, September 12, 1940, a son of the late Allen and Helen Hoover Nye.
He was a United States Army Veteran.
Jim retired after 41 years of service from the former Alfa Laval, Lykens.
He was a well known trap shooter, traveling to many states and winning numerous awards. He enjoyed shooting at Short Mountain, Hegins, Valley View, Trevorton and Elysburg gun clubs. Jim also enjoyed hunting and fishing.
In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his wife, Sherry Deiter Nye, 1983; a daughter, Kristi L. Wenzel, 2000; two sisters, Barb Felton and Jean McCready; two brothers, Robert and Edward Ney.
He is survived by his companion of 29 1/2 years, Mary Bopp Taylor, Lykens; a daughter, Kim Nye of Martha's Vineyard, MA and a son, James Nye Jr., and his wife Angel, Palmyra. Four brothers; Richard Nye, Lingelstown, Gary Ney, Williamstown, Scott Ney, Williamstown, Glenn Ney, Muir; six grandchildren, Jacob, Emily, Kayla, Rylee, Gus and Laura. Nieces, nephews, cousins and many friends.
A Celebration of Jim's life will be held on Saturday, September 26th at 12 pm from the Chapel of the Dimon Funeral Home, Inc, Tower City with Pastor Annette Shutt. Burial will be in the Calvary United Methodist Cemetery, Wiconisco. Visitation will be from 11-12 at the chapel. Please follow CDC guidelines. Memorial donations in lieu of flowers should be made to the American Cancer Society, 712 S. Keyser Avenue, Taylor, PA 18157. To send condolences to the family please visit www.dimonfuneralhome.com
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Paul F. Staerk, Jr., 66, of Zion Grove, passed away Monday, September 21st, 2020 while a patient at the Hazleton Campus of the Lehigh Valley Hospital.
Paul was born in Philadelphia, on October 29, 1953, a son of the late Paul Staerk, Sr., and Virginia (Britland) Staerk of Ringtown.
He was a graduate of the Bishop McDevitt High School in Philadelphia and then served his county in the U.S. Navy. Paul then worked as a mechanic for the Goodyear Company.
Ever the mechanic, he enjoyed working on and restoring automobiles along with working on model cars. Paul was an avid Philadelphia Eagles fan and enjoyed traveling. He loved spending time with his family and coached his children in both T-Ball and Little League.
In addition to his father Paul, Sr., he was preceded in death by two brothers, John and Jim.
In addition to his mother Virginia, he is survived by his wife of 33 years, Nancy (Kelly) Staerk, and by his children, Leslie Merrigan; Kimberly Staerk and Erik Staerk.
Two sisters, Pati Kennedy and Virginia Landis survive, as do 2 grandchildren, nieces and nephews.
A Memorial Service will be held at 12 Noon on Saturday, September 26th, 2020 at the Stauffer-Breznik Funeral Home, 412 West Main Street, Ringtown, with the Rev. Craig Zimmerman, officiating.
Visitation with Paul's family will be held from 11 AM until the time of the service.
All Protocols regarding social distancing and the wearing of face masks will be observed.
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Eva E. Young, 97, of Schuylkill Haven passed away Sunday at her daughter’s home.
Born June 29, 1923 in East Brunswick Township she was the daughter of the late George and Stella Schwenk.
Eva was a member of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Orwigsburg.
In addition to her parents she is preceded in death by her husband William H. Young, Sr. who passed away in 1997. She is also preceded in death by her son William Jr. who passed away this June. Eva was the last remaining member of her family outliving her six sisters and three brothers.
She is survived by her daughter Janet Geist wife of Dean of Schuylkill Haven along with a grandson Steven Mintz of Schuylkill Haven and a granddaughter Heather M. Yonosh wife of John of Phoenixville and their children, twins Katherine and Sarah and Kevin.
A graveside burial service will be held on Wednesday at 11:30 on the grounds of Schuylkill Memorial Park, Schuylkill Haven. Grabowski Funeral Home is entrusted with the services. Memories and condolences can be shared at www.grabowskifuneralhome.com
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Betty Jeanne Krammes, 91, of Tremont, died Sunday, Sept. 20, at Tremont Health & Rehabilitation Center.
Born May 22, 1929, she was a daughter of Paul H. and Viola (Hain) Krammes.
Betty was a 1947 graduate of Tremont High School. She was a retired seamstress, scout leader, church leader and volunteered with many other organizations, including the Tremont Community Pool and as an elementary school volunteer.
She was a member of St. John's Lutheran Church, Tremont.
Surviving are a brother, Dennis Krammes (Faye), of Tremont; sisters, Anna Knapp and Paula Schaeffer, of Pine Grove; nieces, Larkann Beck, Denise Krammes and Deanna Schaeffer; nephews, Rick Knapp, Tracy and Kyle Krammes, Drew and Derek Schaeffer. Also surviving are great-nieces and a great-nephew; a goddaughter, Janeen Stump; cousins and friends.
A graveside memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. Friday at Schuylkill Memorial Park, Schuylkill Haven. Grabowski Funeral Home is entrusted with the services. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations in her memory can be made to 2 Mutts Love, 328 Bridge St., Tremont, PA 17981. Memories and condolences can be shared at www.grabowskifuneralhome.com.
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Meredith Janeyl Barnhart, Ph.D., 37, formerly of Llewellyn, passed away suddenly at her home in Mahwah, New Jersey on Friday September 18.
A licensed social worker, Meredith was the Director of the Information Resource Center for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society in Rye Brook, New York for the past 4 years. Before joining the Leukemia Lymphoma Society, Meredith was a pediatric oncology worker at Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital in New York City for 10 years. Born in Pottsville, Meredith grew up in Llewellyn before moving to New York City., Mamaroneck, N.Y. & most recently, Mahwah, New Jersey. Meredith was a graduate of Minersville Area High School. She earned a Bachelors degree in Social Work from Elizabethtown College & a Master’s degree in Social Work from Columbus University.
Most recently Meredith defended her doctoral dissertation at Fordham University & earned a Doctorate of Philosophy in Social Work in April. Meredith was extremely proud of her work in the field of oncology social work and as a member of many professional organizations, including the Association of Pediatric Oncology Social Workers & the Association of Social Work. Most important to Meredith was the lasting and positive impact she had upon the patients who she was privileged to assist while they were preparing or undergoing treatment. She maintained countless lasting friendships with many of her coworkers and fellow professionals in the field of oncology social work. Her sudden death leaves not only a gaping void in the hearts of those who loved her dearly, but in the hearts of her relatives, friends, and colleagues and throughout the entirety of the oncology social work network of professionals.
Meredith is survived by her parents, Robert & Colleen (Maley) Barnhart of Llewellyn, her brother Matthew, husband of Caroline Barnhart, and daughters nieces, Jo & Lilah, her uncles, Elvin Maley (Betsy), Sheppton, Michael Maley (Linda), Pottsville, Robert Maley of Tremont, Michael Barnhart (Debbie) of BranchDale, Frank Barnhart (Jane) of Minersville, David Barnhart and Richard Kosmisky, husband of her late aunt Debbie, of Auburn, and her fiance’ Jeffrey Knapp of Mahwah, New Jersey, to whom she became engaged while on a recent vacation to St. Croix, great uncles and aunts & cousins.
Meredith was predeceased by her grandparents Elvin & Dorothy Maley of Minersville and Robert & Nancy Barnhart of Llewellyn, her godparents Jane & Glen Greenawald of Llewellyn and her beloved aunt, Deborah Kosmisky of Auburn.
A Funeral Service will be held at the Mahal-Ritzel Funeral Home Inc., 104 S. 4th St., Minersville 11:00 am , Saturday, September 26. All are respectfully invited to attend a visitation at the funeral home from 9:00 to 11:00 am. Interment Mount Peace Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, Meredith’s family kindly requests donations in her memory be made to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Light the Night national event to raise funds for and awareness of blood cancers. https://pages.lls.org/ltn/ctwhv/Wstchstr20/inmemory .
Due to COVID-19, all recommended social distancing, mask requirements, and public safety guidelines will be followed.
Mahal-Ritzel Funeral Home Inc., Minersville is entrusted with the arrangements
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For the third year in a row, the Schuylkill County Historical Society will host it's Haunted History Walking Tours in time for Halloween.
