Obituary of Irene G. Szelc


Irene Geneviee Szelc (nee' Sobczk) [September 9, 1925] beloved daughter, sister, wife, mother, aunt gently passed away surrounded by her family. She was predeceased by her parents Andrew Sobczyk and Stephanie (Kukala); her sisters Genevieve, Marianne, Helen, Josephine (Jay). and brothers Walter and Joseph. In 2021 she lost her husband Walter of 73 years.

When she only nine she lost her beloved younger sister Genevieve, whose name she adopted as her middle name. When she was 12 her mother passed away and then her father when she was 14. By the time she was 16 her older siblings were either married or serving in the military.

With her dog Bingo she got her own apartment and a job at the Pinelli Hat Factory.

The first time her future husband saw her he said, This is the girl I'm going to marry!. Her sister didn't agree as they threw stones at him to keep him away (didn't work).

Although primarily a homemaker, she had a artistic flair and worked as a colorist, adding color tints to black and white photographs. Later she did fine packing of crystal and art objects for Avenel Moving Storage. Her apple pie was legendary as were her potato pancakes, coleslaw, and home fries.

She grew up in the Hopelawn section of Woodbridge Township and lived at times in neighboring Perth Amboy. She and her husband moved back to Hopelawn in a house they built and lived there for the next 65 years.

Although she was considered the "quiet one," she had a wry sense of humor often coming out with a one-liner when it was least expected. She also had her practical side. When she went for a hearing test, the technician asked what she thought was her biggest problem with her hearing. Irene replied, "My Husband!" The surprised technician asked, "What do you mean?" Irene replied, "He doesn't hear a darn thing I say!"

She was a member of the Good Shepherd Parish-Holy Rosary Church, Hopelawn.

She is survived by her son Gary Szelc, her granddaughter Eleanor Irene Szelc, daughter-in-law Lynn May Brown, her sister-in-law Stasia Cohorsky (nee' Szelc)' and many loving nieces and nephews and family friends.

Funeral services will be held 9/12/23, Tuesday 9:30 am at the Mitruska Funeral Home, Inc., 531 New Brunswick Ave., Fords. Followed by a 10:00 am mass in the Good Shepherd Parish. Entombment will follow in the Cloverleaf Memorial Park Mausoleum in Woodbridge. Visitation hours will be held Monday from 5 - 8 pm. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Brain Injury Alliance of N.J. (825 Georges Rd 2nd Floor, North Brunswick, NJ 08902) in her memory.