Mary Barbara (Raykovitz) Williams (1932-2021)

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One by one by one...the sons and daughters of John Theodore and Mary Barbara (Geffert) Rajkowicz are joining their parents in the great beyond. We said our final earthly good-byes to my Mother yesterday and, fittingly, she is buried next to her mother & father in the Rajkowicz family plot in West Wyoming, PA. 

Since my Mother's passing on October 28th, the time has sped by like a spring freshet. I will circle back with some additional thoughts in a week or so, but for those that stop by from time to time...I wanted everyone to know of her passing and that - in the days to follow leading up to her traditional Mass of Christian Burial and interment next to her mother...we did her/our Polish heritage proud. 

The Raykovitz Gals: From 5 Days ago...

We hosted my daughter's bridal shower at our home this past Sunday. My Mom (86) and her sister Helen (88) were able to attend. I (62) hope I inherited their longevity genes.

My Mom is in the wheelchair in the pic below. 

From 50 years ago...

Celebrating a birthday at the Kent Lane homestead on 2/3/1968.  

From L to R:  Mary Barbara (Geffert) Raykovitz (76), Mary Barbara (Raykovitz) Williams (36), Helen (Raykovitz) Bolacker (38) and Diana Lee Williams (9).

Happy 86th!!!

Mary Barbara (Raykovitz) Williams is turning 86 today. 

May she remain forever young!

From Arlington...

 

My daughter was in Arlington yesterday and took a few photos as flags were being placed at all gravesites in preparation for Memorial Day.

 

 

 

 

 

Raymond M. Raykovitz - March 6, 1944

 

On March 6, 1944, an uncle I've never met died in WWII on an island in the South Pacific. Per the newspaper article below, he was a member of the famed First Marine Division and fought in many places during the war including Guadalcanal.

 

One of the many stories I've heard over the years is that Raymond's parents - my maternal grandparents - refused to accept the insurance money detailed in the two letters below.

 

Flatly refused.

 

Many years later, a decade after my grandparents wrote to the VA and asked them to stop sending the checks, it was discovered that someone in the US Postal Service was intercepting the monthly payments and cashing the checks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Above/Below: Ray on the South Street Bridge in Wilkes-Barre PA in July 1941

 

 

 

 

 

Raymond M. Raykovitz was interred in Arlington National Cemetery on March 3, 1949.

 

 

Above: My Mom/Raymond's sister - pics taken 57 years apart

 

RIP, Ray.

 

A Rose E'er Blooming

  

To the best of my Mom's recollection, and that of her siblings, the "Seven Sisters" rose bush in the pictures below was planted approximately ~65 years ago in the yard of their parents' home on Kent Lane in the Mayflower section of Wilkes-Barre, PA.  Although the stories do vary a little, based upon other photos I have, it does appear to have been a Mother's Day gift from Mary's son Stanley and his wife Jean.

 

As I was cleaning out the Kent Lane property between 2012 and its eventual sale in October 2014, I pondered the fate of that bush. It had seen better days, but it still bloomed every year and - in addition to the hostas along the sidewalk - was one of the few plants surviving on the property from when John and Mary Raykovitz were alive.

 

About a month prior to selling the property, my sister and I decided to dig up some of the hostas ( they survived ) along with the rose bush. Based upon the 60+ year-old root system I was able to hack out of the ground, I truly doubted the bush would survive. When I got it home, I kept it well watered, prepped the spot I decided to plant it in, and mulched it liberally to protect the roots for what turned out to be a very harsh 2014-2015 winter.

 

Little by little, the transported rose bush began throwing out new shoots. This past summer, several roses bloomed that we were able to share with my Mom and her sister Helen.

 

As the new owner transformed the Kent Lane property into his home, one of the first things he did was to remove the front hedges and all of the trees and shrubs in the side yard to allow for off-street parking that is hard to come by on that narrow lane. The pink-flowering dogwood tree in the 4th picture below - now gone - was a Mother's Day gift I gave to my Mom in 1980. Seeing that ripped out did not disturb me as much as it would have if the rose bush was a casualty of his changes...but thankfully it was not.

 

As the bush appears to have established itself at its new location, I'll be doing some heavy pruning this spring to  - hopefully - encourage new shoots to emerge.

 

In the end, I view that simple rose bush as a living touchstone to the past.  

 

 

Above: Mary Barbara (Geffert) Raykovitz (circa 1960)

Below: Mary's three daughters - Rita, Helen & Mary (circa 1980)

 

 

 

Above/Below: Rose bush @ Kent Lane circa June 2014

 

 

Below: Relocated rose bush in 2015

 

 

 

More to follow.