Maria Bakalec

Maria Bakalec, 97, passed away peacefully in her sleep on March 25, 2025. Beloved mother of Daria Temnycky, her husband Orest and grandchildren Paul and Christina with husband Paul Hadzewycz and grandchildren Nicholas Parker with wife Erin and children Aubree and Bentley, and Dennis Parker with wife Keri and children Athena and Theo. Predeceased by her husband Wolodymyr and sons Oleh and Roman.

Maria was born in Lischentsi, Buchach, Ukraine in 1927. She began her schooling in Lischentsi and then in Buchach. It was in Buchach that she belonged to the scouting group Plast which at the time operated underground under the name of VSUM as it was forbidden by the Germans.

In 1944 when the Bolsheviks were approaching, her parents asked her aunt Anna Pendzey to take her as they fled. They ended up in Komanche in the hopes that the war would soon end, and they could return. However, that was not the case, and they moved on first to Slovakia, then Hungary and finally to Austria. They moved around in Austria and after the war, stayed in Landek where there were other Ukrainians living in a refugee camp. They registered there, received food vouchers and soon learned that Ukrainians were well organized, and she registered in school. She also took nursing courses and after an internship at the Landek Hospital she began working in the camp infirmary.

In 1945, Plast began organizing scouting groups in Landek. Maria joined the first group, became a “plastunka virlytsia” (Eagle Scout) and became their leader (zviazkova) upon becoming an older scout (starsha plastunka). In 1949 she married Wolodymyr Bakalec, who graduated from Gimnazia in Innsbrook and later apprenticed as a tailor in Landek. In 1950 Maria and her husband emigrated to America, first settling in New York where Maria was the first employee at the iconic Veselka restaurant. They became active in Plast in NYC and later, after her first son, Oleh, was born they moved to Passaic, New Jersey. Here she had two more children, Roman and Daria. She worked at Apex Electronics where she became the supervisor in a TV tube manufacturing company. Once again, they became active in the local Plast branch.

Over the years, Maria also joined the Ukrainian Women’s League of America and was very active in the scholarship program and in sending endless packages of clothing and food to orphanages in Ukraine. Soon people knew to bring good clean items to her home and often you can see boxes in the living room being filled over time and shipped to Ukraine. She was a member of the Ukrainian Museum in NYC and served as secretary at the local Self Reliance Foundation branch.

The family became members of St. Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic Church in Passaic and Maria was part of the Pyrohy making brigade at the church who were very successful in raising funds for St. Nicholas School.

Maria had a difficult life, escaping the war, forever losing contact with her parents at age 17, living in a displaced person’s camp, burying her husband and two sons far too soon. But she persevered, was humble, served her community and her beloved Ukraine but most of all loved her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren dearly.

May she Rest in Peace! Тихо Спи – Без Тривог! Вічная Пам’ять!

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to St. Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic Church ( https://stnicholasucc.org ) and to the Ukrainian Catholic University Foundation ( https://ucufoundation.org ).