Josephine F. Bronski

Josephine Frances (nee Dudziak) Bronski, died peacefully at home in Yardley, Pennsylvania on Sunday, December 1, 2013, with her primary caregiver, Maria Peters, and her daughter, Kate at her side. She lived an outstanding 98 years. Born at home in March 2015 to the late Stanley and Agnes (nee Skrzynecki) Dudziak, Josie was raised in Chicago, Illinois, where she recalled running through wheat fields as a child with her younger sister, Frances. In 1919, a set of twins, Henry and Helen, were born into the family. Tragedy struck when Josie caught the measles at school and inadvertently infected the twins, who were then two years old. Within one week, both were dead. Josie mourned the twins, and her role in their deaths, for the rest of her life. Her father was devastated by the loss of his only son, and moved the family to a then-rural area of Chicago on Marmora Avenue to start life anew. As a young teenager, Josie got a job at Curtiss, where, by hand, she shaped chocolate from a conveyor belt into Baby Ruth bars. She wrapped 150 candy bars for three cents. As a result of that work, Josie never ate another candy bar. She attended Holy Family Academy (HFA), and admired the example of one quiet, hard-working teacher, Sister Bernice, so much that she wanted to become a nun herself. When she shared this dream with her father, he vetoed it, implying that Josie deserved a larger life. Josie took violin lessons and learned to read notes. She spent countless hours happily singing her way through life, first as a child with her parents and siblings, and then with her husband and children. In the final days, Josie could not sing, so she merrily nodded her head in time with the music Maria sang to her. Josie completed work in the Commercial Department at The Academy in May 1931. Her career as a bookkeeper began at Pioneer Brewery, where she worked for several years. Josie admired a boy across the back alley, and dutifully started practicing her typing at the back window every day. At seventeen, she attended the Fourth of July fireworks at Portage Park with this boy, Joseph M. Bronski. Joe and Josie were married in June 1936, and celebrated with a party in the basement. Josie cleaned the chickens and made the sausage for the wedding reception. The day after their wedding, they both returned to work. After living in a bungalow behind her parents home for twelve years, Josie and Joe purchased two acres of land in Lombard, Illinois, and built their home, board by board. Josie was the brains behind every aspect of this project, and she worked until each project met her high standards. She taught herself how to mix concrete, tile floors, hang drywall, plaster walls, and install flooring. She grew a huge garden that included every fruit and vegetable imaginable, and an orchard with apple, cherry, peach and pear trees. When Josie wanted to blend the qualities of different apple trees, she taught herself how to graft them together. Whenever Joe wanted to add something to their garden, Josie figured out how to do it. Josie had a determination that was unstoppable. Every year, Josie and Joe shared their bounty with extended family. Josie cooked like a fiend and loved every minute of it. She and Joe generously let everyone pick extra produce and take it home. Having lived through the Great Depression, Josie was frugal and hard-working. She did the bookkeeping for the businesses she ran with Joe. They created and sold wooden toys. They harvested and sold apples, Christmas trees, rabbits and three types of fishing bait. Josie made clown dolls, stuffed them with old clothes, and sold them. But Josie was happiest when she was in her kitchen, spatula in hand, cooking for a crowd. She could produce phenomenal amounts of wonderful food in seemingly no time. Her canned foods not only were delicious, they never spoiled, and were as beautiful as those in magazines. It seemed as if Josie must have made a million apple turnovers, each one tastier than the last. She used the perfect combination of her own apples to make chunky, sweet applesauce. Her pickles were so tantalizingly crunchy that everyone started eating them before they were brined. The list of desserts she produced regularly would require a paragraph of its own. With her great intellect and artistry, Josie mastered any challenge she chose. She crafted Christmas ornaments from tin cans, each one a different design. These ornaments still sparkle flawlessly every Christmas on her daughter Kates tree. She crocheted ringing bell ornaments, and made tinsel from sardine cans. They remain beautiful to this day. Josie taught herself tatting, crocheting, knitting and embroidery. She could examine any woven article and create an identical version at home; no pattern needed. She sewed clothes from her own designs. She taught herself how to make French pastry (which must be kept cold) on one of the hottest Midwestern days, in a kitchen with no air conditioning. When the Rubiks Cube came onto the market, she stayed awake all night and mastered its secrets by sunrise. Josie and Joe moved to Sandwich, Illinois in 1996, where Josie lived until Joes death in September 2007. Ten days after her husbands death, Josie moved to Yardley, Pennsylvania, to join her daughter Kates family. Josephine was a classic example of what is now called The Greatest Generation. Although her life was filled with more than her fair share of tragedies, Josies resiliency, positive disposition, and continued fascination with the world allowed her to overcome her deep losses. In her final years in Yardley, Josie was known as Queen Josephine. She had a regal elegance that inspired devotion from her caregivers. Josie never complained. She loved all the women who took care of her, and told them so daily. She dearly loved her primary caregiver, Maria Peters. Together, they sang, danced and chatted away the final years of Josies long life. It is possible that Josie loved no one else in her life as much as she loved Maria, for Maria selflessly and tirelessly provided every possible comfort to Josie in her hours of greatest need. Josie was preceded in death by her cherished husband of 71 years, Joseph, her son, Stanley (Karen), and son, Chester. Josie is survived by her daughters, Frances Rheintgen and Kate Bronski Roth, her son-in-law, Stan Roth, namesake grandsons, Joseph M. and Franklin J. Roth, and devoted dog, C.J. She was preceded in death by her adoring sister, Frances Kobyleski, who doted on Josie her entire life. She is survived by her sister, Alice Labuda (the late Wally). She was preceded in death by her brothers-in-law, John (Wanda) and Art (Barbara); her sisters-in-law, Sophie Urbanski (the late Edward), Cecilia, Adeline Wise (the late Merrill), and Bernadine Dziem (the late Witol). Josie is survived by a special nephew, Bob Labuda (Carmelita), of Millbrae, California, who remembered her with a call and a card on every occasion. When Bob spoke with her just before her passing, Josie could hardly hear anymore, but when she understood that it was Bob on the line, she broke into a radiant smile. Josie is also survived by many friends and relatives around the country. A Funeral Mass will be held at 10 am on Saturday, December 7, 2013, at St. Joseph the Worker Parish, 9172 New Falls Road, Fallsington, Pennsylvania, 19054, where family and friends will be received from 9 am until the time of the service. A luncheon reception will follow. Interment will be held privately at a later date. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in Josies memory to The Salvation Army, 215 Appletree Drive, Levittown, Pennsylvania, 19058.