U.S., Obituary Collection, 1930-Current
Francis L. Stawski
Francis L. Stawski of Wading River, a Marine Corps sergeant in both World War II and the Korean War, died Feb. 10, 2003 after a long illness at John T. Mather Memorial Hospital, Port Jefferson. He was 74.
He was born in Jamesport on September 19, 1928, the son of Francis and Frances (Mitchell) Stawski. He worked locally as a plumber for many years and served as president of the Riverhead Varsity Club from 1972 to '74. He was also a member of Van Rensselaer Skidmore Post 2476 of the VFW.
Mr. Stawski is survived by his wife, Madeline; two sons, Gregory, of Calverton, and Francis, of Wading River; a daughter, Linda Erick of Wading River; a brother, David, of Pennsylvania; a sister, Annette Berdiniler of Florida; and three grandchildren.
Memorial services were on Wednesday evening, Feb. 12, led by members of the VFW at Alexander-Tuthill Funeral Home in Wading River. Funeral services were conducted the next day at the funeral parlor by Msgr. John Sullivan of St. John the Baptist R.C. Church. Following cremation, internment with military honors is planned for Calverton National Cemetery.
Jennie Lynch
Jennie Lynch of Riverhead died Feb. 16, 2003 at Central Suffolk Hospital. She was 84.
She was born in Brooklyn on July 28, 1918, to John and Victoria (Nowacki) Ziszkowski.
Predeceased by her husband, John, Ms. Lynch is survived by six children, John, of Islip, Ronnie Bos of Waterford, Conn., Bernadette Arias of Canaan, N.Y., Steven, of Bayside, Janette Hiltbruner of Emerald Island, N.C., and Laurie Perrier of East Moriches; 11 grandchildren and 23 great-grandchildren.
She served for many years as director of volunteers at Central Suffolk Hospital in Riverhead. The hospital awarded her with a "Lifetime Achievement Award" last October.
Visiting hours will be tomorrow, Friday, from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. at Reginald H. Tuthill Funeral Home, Riverhead. A funeral mass will be celebrated Saturday morning at 9:30 at St. Isidore's R.C. Church in Riverhead, followed by burial at Calvary Cemetery in Queens.
Mary Jones
Mary Jones, formerly of Riverhead, died Feb. 5, 2003 at Martin County Memorial Hospital in Stuart, Fla., at the age of 79.
Born in Riverhead on Aug. 30, 1923, to Camiel and Hermine VanMiddelem, she had worked for many years in the office of Riverhead's town clerk and, earlier, for Grumman Aerospace in Calverton.
She is survived by her husband, John, and a sister, Lucy Brooks, both of Stuart; a son, Jerry Brown of Riverhead; a daughter, Linda Daneshvar of Milledgeville, Ga.; a brother, Eugene VanMiddelem of Mt. Sinai; five grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.
Cremation was private and, according to her son, Ms. Jones's ashes were buried at sea off the Florida coast.
Virginia Zaborowski
Virginia "Ginny" Zaborowski, a longtime Riverhead resident, who spent her life giving care and comfort through her nursing career and church work, died at her home on Jan. 31, 2003 after a lengthy illness. She was 77.
She was born on Dec. 12, 1925, in Port Arthur, Texas, to Harry J. and Mary Pearl Romero, who lived in nearby Groves. At baptism, her parents hadn't yet agreed on a name, so upon seeing a statue of the Virgin Mary, that became her given name, prompting family members to call her "Virgie." It was soon wisely changed to Mary Virginia.
After attending grade and high schools in Port Neches, Texas, she graduated as a registered nurse from St. Mary's School of Nursing in Beaumont, Texas, while still in her teens, under an accelerated World War II program. She was then voluntarily commissioned as an Army Corps Nurse for the remainder of the conflict. She married Edward Henry Zaborowski, a Navy man stationed in the area, on May 5, 1946, and returned to his Riverhead hometown.
Virginia worked as a nurse in private practice and, after a brief tenure at Southampton Hospital, joined the staff at Central Suffolk Hospital in Riverhead. Upon Mr. Zaborowski's passing in 1963, she raised their four children, sending them to Catholic grade and high schools. She eventually rose to the position of head nurse in the hospital's intensive care unit, receiving a certificate of merit from the Town of Riverhead upon her retirement in 1992. She continued to work part-time at CSH until her illness.
A deeply religious woman of purpose and principle, she became more involved with her parish family at St. John the Evangelist in Riverhead after her retirement. Virginia was a Eucharistic Minister, which included visiting shut-ins and dispensing communion and ashes, and was also a lector. After studying two years to receive a Pastoral Formation Institute certificate from the Rockville Centre diocese, she specialized in bereavement, heading the parish's group that home-counseled people.
She prided herself in keeping fit, and among her favorite activities were jogging and yoga. Virginia also enjoyed gardening, photography, traveling, movies, theater, painting, dancing, bowling and golf and loved to walk the area beaches collecting various stones. She was also a member of the Moose Lodge in Riverhead, spent time as a 4-H Club Leader and worked for the Board of Elections.
She is survived by two daughters, Diane Spiegel of Forest Hills and Jacquie Cronin of Shirley; two sons, Edward, of Riverhead, and David, of Central Islip; and a brother, Harry, of Albany, Calif.
Visitation was held on Feb. 2 and 3 at F.J. McLaughlin Funeral Home in Riverhead. A funeral mass was celebrated by the Rev. Thomas Coby on Feb. 4 at St. John the Evangelist R.C. Church in Riverhead. Interment followed at St. John's Cemetery.
Memorial donations may be made to Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, Box E, 1275 York Ave., New York, NY 10021 or online at www.mskcc.org.
Alice Marie Cook
Former Riverhead resident Alice Marie Cook died at Westhampton Care Center April 19, 2003 at the age of 94.
Ms. Cook was born in Riverhead on July 20, 1908, to Charles and Clara Smith. She enjoyed gardening and sewing.
She is survived by a son, John, of Hampton Bays; a brother, Harry Smith of Riverhead; four grandchildren; and eight great-grandchildren. She was predeceased by a son Larry, of Manorville, and her husband, Lawrence, who died in 1975.
A funeral for Ms. Cook was held Monday at F.J. McLaughlin Funeral Home in Riverhead. Interment was at Flanders Cemetery.
Edwin S. Lapham
Edwin S. Lapham of Wading River died April 20, 2003 at a nursing home in St. James at the age of 91.
He was a founding partner of the Riverhead law firm of Scheinberg, Wolf, Lapham & DePetris. Mr. Lapham was also a 1947 charter member of Wading River Fire Department and a founder of Wading River Historical Society.
He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Elisabeth; three daughters, Margaret Quinn, Barbara Lapham and Jean Owlett; four grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.
Visitation was April 23 at Alexander-Tuthill Funeral Home in Wading River, with firematic services that evening. Funeral services are scheduled for today, April 24, at 10 a.m. at Wading River Congregational Church, with the Rev. Peter Vibert, pastor, officiating. Interment will be private.
Memorial donations may be made to Wading River Fire Department, Wading River Congregational Church or Wading River Historical Society
Josephine Centore
Josephine Centore of Flanders died on April 17, 2003 at Westhampton Care Center at the age of 83.
Born in Italy on April 21, 1919, she was the daughter of Anthony and Evelina Galluccio. Her son, Lawrence, of Brooklyn and three grandchildren survive her.
A prayer service was held on April 21 at Reginald H. Tuthill Funeral Home, Riverhead. A funeral mass was offered the next day at St. John the Evangelist R.C. Church, followed by burial at Calverton National Cemetery.
