Obituary of Jozefa Hawryluk

Jozefa Hawryluk, 97, of Whiting, passed away on May 6th at Crestwood Manor in Whiting.  Born in Poland in March 1922 to Franciszek and Malgorzata Wildhirt, she grew up on a farm and was second youngest of 13 children.  In 1949, having moved to England after World War II, Jozefa responded to a newspaper ad for a wife in a Polish newspaper.  As a result, she met the man who was to become her husband, Michal.  Following his military service during World War II, Michal had also moved to England.  In 1952, Jozefa and Michal moved to the United States with their 19 month old son, Richard.  The family lived in Brooklyn, where their younger son, Andrew, was born.  In Brooklyn, Michal and Jozefa owned and operated the M&J Food Store for 19 years, before retiring to Crestwood Village in 1978.  In recent years, Jozefa was active in the Polish communities in Whiting, Toms River and Clark.  Jozefa enjoyed socializing with friends and loved nothing better than a party, especially one with music, dancing and singing.  Her excellent cooking, especially of many Polish dishes, was lauded and appreciated by her children and grandchildren.

   Jozefa was predeceased by her husband, Michal, who passed away in 1995, and by her companion of 16 years, Edward Wojcik, who died in 2016.  Jozefa’s greatest source of joy was her family.  She was very proud of her sons’ professional and personal accomplishments and delighted in watching her grandchildren grow up.  She was thrilled by the arrival of a great grandchild in 2014.  Jozefa is survived by her two sons, Richard J. Hawryluk and his wife, Mary Katherine Hawryluk of Princeton Junction, NJ and Andrew M. Hawryluk and his wife, Patrice Hawryluk of Monterey, CA.  She is also survived by her four grandchildren: Amy Deavours, Allison Hawryluk, both living in Fresno, CA, David Hawryluk of Los Angeles and Kevin Hawryluk of Chicago.  She is also survived by her precious great grandson, Andrew in California.

   Visitation will be Saturday, May 11th from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. at Manchester Memorial Funeral Home, 28 Schoolhouse Road, Whiting.  A Funeral Liturgy will follow at 10:45 a.m. at the All Saints Chapel of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church, Whiting.