June Patricia (Wenzel) Kogut, passed away on January 31, 2020, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She was born in Hartford, Connecticut, on June 27, 1932, and was married to Maurice (Maury) Kogut for more than 60 years. Maury passed away on November 25, 2019. June was the beloved mother of Melissa Kogut of Newton, MA, Pamela Kogut (Jerry Michael) of Cambridge, MA, and Stacy DeScenza of Ipswich, MA. She was the proud gramma of Amelia Michael.
June, the daughter of Joseph and Gwendolyn Wenzel, grew up in Fairhaven, Massachusetts. June graduated from Fairhaven High School in 1950 and from the State Teachers College of North Adams (now called the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts) in North Adams, Massachusetts in 1954. June began her teaching career in Trumbull, Connecticut, where she taught 4th grade from 1954 – 1956, and then continued teaching 4th grade in Fairhaven, Massachusetts, from 1956 - 1957. With a strong sense of adventure, June joined an Air Force program and moved to an Air Force base in Fukuoka, Japan, where she taught school for two years to the air force children on Itazuke Air Base. While there, she met and married Maury, a pediatrician also stationed at the base.
After serving in Japan, June and Maury moved to North Hollywood, California in 1959, where they raised their three daughters. This period of her life included frequent outings to Disneyland, Knott’s Berry Farm, Griffith Park, Santa Barbara, and to the beaches and mountains of California. June allowed her girls to have too many pets to count, was always creating craft projects, and organized and led the family through countless camping trips to National Parks. June was an active member of the PTA and also taught school in the LA area for several years.
June and Maury moved to Dayton, Ohio in 1980, and lived there for 18 years. Maury was Medical Director of the Children’s Medical Center. During her time in Dayton, June became very involved with the Dayton Children’s Hospital Terrific Women in Giving organization, otherwise known as TWIGs, an auxiliary group that played an important role in helping the hospital provide quality care to kids throughout the Dayton, Ohio region. The group’s major fundraiser was an annual event called The Sugarplum Festival of Trees that featured unique and handmade gift items. June and her close group of TWIGs friends spent months creating beautiful crafts to sell at this event.
When Maury retired in 1998, he and June moved to Cape Cod to be closer to their daughters and to June’s sister, Leah Van Buskirk, and her family. June kept up her craft-work on the Cape, leading a painting group for many years, and donating handmade crafts to the Centerville Library for its annual holiday fundraiser.
June was known for being a loyal friend, a wonderful mom, a caring wife, an adored grandmother, and for having a joyful spirit. In addition to her three daughters, son-in-law, and granddaughter, she leaves her sister, Leah; her sister-in-law, Kathleen (Kitty) Kogut; several cousins and their families; and several nieces and nephews and their families. June appreciated and valued the comfort and care provided by Dean Sennett and Elizabeth Loiselle in her last years; they became dear friends.
June will be missed.
Burial will be private. A memorial service will be held at Doane Beal and Ames, 160 West Main St., Hyannis 02601 on Saturday, February 8 at 11 a.m.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a contribution to an organization that reflects a love of animals or nature conservancy.
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