Maria SZEWCZENKO

14 NOV 1922 - 8 JAN 2015

• BIRTH: 14 NOV 1922, Stesiwka, Ukraine
• DEATH: 8 JAN 2015, South Bend, IN

• MARRIAGE: 28 MAY 1948, Ingolstadt, Germany

1.  Ignatius PIOTROWIAK

INDEX

[N12304] Maria Piotrowiak
Nov. 14, 1922 - Jan. 8, 2015
SOUTH BEND - Maria Piotrowiak, 92, passed away Thursday, January 8, 2015, in the Sterling House. Maria was born on November 14, 1922, in Stesiwka, Ukraine, to Gregorz and Apolonia Szewczenko. She worked as a bookkeeper as a young woman. She also witnessed and suffered through the starvation of millions of Ukrainians under Stalin. After the start of World War II, Maria was forced from her home to work on a farm in forced labor in Germany. Following the war, she was relocated to a displaced persons camps run by the U.S. government. She met and married her beloved husband, John Piotrowiak, on May 28, 1948, in Ingolstadt, Germany. Maria's beloved son, Ignatius, was born in Germany, prior to the family emigrating to the United States in 1952 and settling in South Bend. Her husband and son preceded her in death. Maria was an expert seamstress, and sewed much of her own clothing. She used that talent working for many years for Louie's Tux Shop in South Bend. Maria was also an avid gardener and a wonderful cook. She and her husband were fond of canning food, including what she grew in her garden. Maria was a longtime parishioner of St. Hedwig's Church in South Bend. Visitation is 5-7 pm Tuesday, January 13, 2015, in ST. JOSEPH FUNERAL HOME, 824 S. Mayflower Rd. A Funeral Service will begin at 7 pm Tuesday in the funeral home. Entombment at St. Joseph Cemetery at a later date. Condolences may be made at www.sjfh.net. Published in South Bend Tribune on Jan. 11, 2015