Sister Eva Marie Zlotucha, IHM
Sister Eva Marie Zlotucha, IHM, of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary died on Monday, October 15, 2012, at Our Lady of Peace Residence in Scranton.
She was born on January 22, 1937, in Montrose, PA, and given the name Mary Ann. She was the daughter of the late Joseph and Helen Kielceski Zlotucha. She entered the IHM Congregation on September 8, 1954, and made her temporary profession of vows on August 2, 1957, and her final profession of vows on August 3, 1960.
Sister Eva Marie served as a principal at the following schools: St. Patrick’s Elementary School in Oneida, NY, from 1969 to 1971; St. Ambrose Elementary School in Bridgeport, CT, from 1971 to 1980; and Little Flower Elementary School in Bethesda, MD, from 1980 to 1990.
Sister served as a teacher at the following schools: St. Matthew Elementary School in East Stroudsburg, PA, from 1957 to 1958; Immaculate Conception Elementary School in West Pittston, PA, from 1958 to 1964; and St. Henry Elementary School in Gresham, OR, from 1964 to 1969.
Sister Eva Marie also served as pastoral associate at St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Scranton, PA, from 1990 to 1997. She was the director of IHM Heartworks at the Marian Convent and Our Lady of Peace Residence in Scranton, PA, from 2001 to 2009. She was an instructor for the English as a Second Language program at St. John Neumann Parish in Scranton, PA, from 2011 to 2012.
From 2012 until the time of her death, Sister Eva Marie served as a prayer minister at Our Lady of Peace Residence in Scranton.
She received a Bachelor of Science degree in education from Marywood College and a Master of Science degree in education from the University of Portland.
She was preceded in death by an aunt, Sister M. Thomas Aquinas Kielceski, IHM.
She is survived by an aunt, Sophie Kielceski of Montrose, PA; an uncle, Edmund Clarke of Portland, OR; and cousins.
The funeral will be Thursday, at 11:00 a.m. with Mass of Christian Burial at the IHM Center, 2300 Adams Avenue in Scranton. Friends may call at Our Lady of Peace Residence on Wednesday, October 17, between 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. A prayer service will be held at 4:30 p.m. Interment will follow Mass on Thursday at St. Catherine’s Cemetery in Moscow, PA.
Memorial contributions may be made to support the retired IHM Sisters c/o the IHM Sisters Retirement Fund, IHM Center, 2300 Adams Avenue, Scranton, PA 18509.
Reprinted from "In Memoriam" section of Journey, Fall 2012 issue
With Thanksgiving having just passed (and Sister Eve’s favorite holiday) I write with gratitude about the best friend and mentor a person could ever have. Sister Eva Marie was my friend but also a friend to so many people. Sister Eve was diagnosed with cancer in 1992 and was given 3 months to live. Trust me, she lived it well. Eve loved life and cherished every moment of it. She was so thankful for every day that God gave to her and she lived life to the fullest.
My memories of Sister Eve are her smile, her laugh, reading, eating seafood, and loving life. She was kind to everyone she met and loved
to be with other people, especially her community of IHMs.
She loved to teach and be with her students, and all the faculty members loved her.
Eve fought to the very end and never complained about her illness.
So I will have to say, during this season of Thanksgiving, let us all be thankful for Sister Eve and all the lives she touched. She will never be forgotten.
by Susan Brown, IHM
