Irene L. Stachecki

• Visitation:
  Sunday, February 28, 2016
  2-4 & 7-9 PM
  
• Place of Visitation: 
  O'Connell Funeral Home
  30 Little Plains Road
  Southampton, NY
• Funeral Service: 
  Monday, February 29, 2016 at 10:00 AM
  Our Lady of Poland RC Church
  Southampton, New York
• Interment:
  St. Isidore's RC Cemetery
  Riverhead, New York
• In Leiu of Flowers:
  Dominican Sisters of Hope
  299 North Highland Avenue, Ossining NY 10562
  or
  Our Lady of Poland RC Church
  35 Maple Street, Southampton NY 11968
  or
  Any Veteran Organization of Choice

Biography

Born:  December 9, 1923
Died:  February 24, 2016
Age:   92

 

After prolonged illness, Irene L. Stachecki, nee Maks, of Southampton, passed away quietly in her sleep on February 23, 2016. Predeceased by her husband of 64 years, Floryan Stachecki, and two brothers, Frank and Valentine Maks, she is survived by three sons, Peter of Northport, Charles of Southampton and Richard of Campton, New Hampshire, and one daughter, Linda Sendlenski of Southampton.  Irene was also the proud grandmother of eleven grandchildren and nineteen great-grandchildren. 

 

Born in Riverhead, December 9, 1923, Irene sold movie tickets and worked as a telephone operator in her youth to help her family. Married at the age of eighteen, she quickly took to being a farmer’s wife.  She learned to plant and pick potatoes, to operate a vegetable stand, to cut seed potatoes and even to drive a farm truck and tractor.  Later, in addition to caring for her four children, she worked as a telephone company business representative.  When she retired, she continued working as the bookkeeper for her husband’s contracting firm, FGR Builders.

 

An excellent cook, Irene loved to entertain, and her home was a hub of activity. If friends stopped by, a delicious, albeit impromptu, dinner would soon be on the table.  Her grandchildren all learned to swim in her pool.  They loved to raid her pantry for the treats and juice that they knew were stocked there.  She and Flory attended every possible game, concert, recital, and graduation they could.  After retiring to Florida, they kept clippings of all of their grandchildren’s activities.

 

An avid gardener, Irene grew hundreds of beautiful tulips in her yard. She enjoyed reading, crocheting and playing cards.  For decades, her Michigan Club played cards, chatted and dropped change on the floor for lucky children to find the next morning.  Irene and Flory enjoyed golf and dancing, especially the polka.  They bowled in a weekly mixed league at the Polish Hall for years.   They loved to travel, counting among their favorite journeys were a cross-country trip to California and one to Poland, the land of their ancestry. 

 

Irene’s friends recall her as loving and loyal, with an understanding heart. Her smile and bright blue eyes were captivating.  A lifelong friend remembered Irene as always knowing what to say to help keep him on the straight and narrow. Over and over, friends said she was just a special, caring person, known for cooking and helping those in need.  Most of all, Irene is remembered for her devotion to her family, her friends and her faith.

 

In lieu of flowers, Irene’s family requests that memorial donations be made to the Dominican Sisters of Hope, 299 North Highland Avenue, Ossining, NY 10562-2327; Our Lady of Poland R.C. Church, 35 Maple Street, Southampton, NY 11968; or any veterans organization of your choice.