Susan Panchuck, 92, of Natick, Massachusetts died peacefully, at home, on May 10, 2011 with her family by her side.
She was born in Hanto, Pennsylvania and was the youngest of eleven children born to John and Susan (Stefik) Galandak. At the age of six, her family left the coal mining area of Pennsylvania, and moved to her parents’ homeland of Czechoslovakia. For the next 12 years, she worked on the family farm until her sister sponsored her return to America in 1936. She often mentioned that the day of her return to the United States was one of the happiest days of her life. She worked as a domestic and as a cook at Schraft’s and Macy’s in New York City until she married her husband Joseph in December of 1944 after his return from an overseas tour of duty in the Pacific Theatre during World War II. In 1950, she moved to Paramus, New Jersey where she lived for 42 years before moving to Natick, Massachusetts after the death of her husband.
Susan was a loving mother, wife, grandmother, and aunt and a wonderful mentor to her granddaughter, Melissa. She lived a life of unparalleled generosity and maintained a beautifully open, accessible heart. Susan tread gently upon the earth, respecting the past, present, and future in her thoughts, words, and actions. She possessed an incredible ability to read people, which gave her a profound capacity for empathy yet empowered her to never expect more from people than she knew they could give. It was through keeping this keen balance that she lived in real joy. Her loyalty and commitment to family and friends were deep and true, offered not from a place of obligation but of love and happiness. It was a bountiful, irreplaceable gift in our lives.
She is survived by her son Michael and his wife Paula of Natick, her granddaughter Melissa and her husband Blake Roper of Newton and loving nieces, nephews, and friends.
Visiting hours in the John Everett & Sons Funeral Home, 4 Park Street (at Natick Common), on Friday, May 13, 2011 from 5:00 to 7:00 PM to be followed by a service of remembrance at 7:00 PM. Burial will be private in the George Washington Memorial Park, Paramus, NJ. A memorial Mass will be celebrated at Our Lady Help of Christians Church in West Newton at 8 AM on Sunday, June 5.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the VNA of Natick, 209 West Central Street, Natick, MA 01760. Bay Path Elder Services, Boston Post Road West, Marlboro, MA 01752-1853, or the Natick Food Pantry, c/o the Natick Service Council, 2 Webster Street, Natick, MA 01760.