Mary M. Sopko

Mary Sopko passed away peacefully on Tuesday, February 7, 2017 at the age of 101 at Holy Cross Village, Notre Dame, where she had resided since 2011. She celebrated her 100th birthday with her family over a year ago at Holy Cross Village. The attached picture was taken on the occasion of her 100th birthday party.

Mary was born in Imperial, PA but moved with her family to Warren, Ohio when she was five, where she grew up, the eldest of five daughters and one son of immigrant parents.  When she first attended school, she could speak only Slovakian, the language spoken at home. Within two years, she was among the brightest in her class, with a special penchant for math and an uncanny ability to compute complex math problems in her head. Her attention to detail was second to none. At age 94, she called her son to tell him the accountant had forgotten to include a newly implemented tax credit on her return. The accountant checked and agreed, and kiddingly asked if she was available to work during tax season.

She married Clement Sopko on September 6, 1937, in Warren, and they raised four sons who survive: Richard (Elaine) Sopko of Locust Grove, VA; Thomas (Joyce) Sopko, Esq. of Cassopolis, MI; Dr. Robert Sopko (Angela Kramer) of Ft. Thomas Kentucky; and James (Teresa) of Fuquay Varina, NC.  In addition, Mary has 8 grandchildren, 21 great-grandchildren, and one surviving sister, Helen Biela of Illinois.

Mary and Clem were in the grocery business all of their married life, eventually moving to Ravenna, Ohio, and owning their own store in Edinburg, Ohio, which they appropriately named “Four Sons.”  Mary worked alongside her husband in the store, did all the bookkeeping at night, and kept this up for 20 years until they sold the store to sons Rich and Jim and retired to Cocoa Beach, Florida where they had many wonderful years together before Clem passed away in 1995.

Mary’s love for her four sons, and her encouragement to each of them to pursue the best education possible and to always treat everyone with respect, made a life-long impression on her sons.  Along this line, a work ethic was instilled in each of the sons as they worked in the store every summer and every school vacation.

Mary was known for her outstanding homemaking skills.  Her cooking and baking were legendary and any meal she made was perfection.  In addition, she loved to sew, crochet, and do counted-cross stitch.  Mary also spent many hours each week when she lived in Cocoa Beach, Florida, as a volunteer at the gift shop in the Cocoa Beach Hospital and at Our Saviour Catholic Church where she and her husband, Clement, were parishioners for many years.

If you asked Mary her greatest achievement, she would say “my husband and I working hard and sacrificing to see four sons graduate from private colleges or universities with no loans.”  Although Mary had to leave school after 8th grade to help support her family during the Depression, she never lost sight of the value of an education which she instilled in her sons.

A special thank you to Senior Helpers and the staff at Holy Cross Village for their wonderful support and loving care.  Your compassion and kindness will forever be remembered.

There will be no public visitation.  A Memorial Mass will take place at 11:00am on Saturday, February 25, 2017 in the chapel at Schubert Villa at Holy Cross Village, 54515 Indiana S.R. 933, Notre Dame, IN 46556. Friends may visit with the family from 10:00-11:00am on Saturday, February 25 at Schubert Villa. Her ashes will be interred at a later date in Memorial Gardens located at Our Saviour Catholic Church in Cocoa Beach, Florida. Palmer Funeral Home-Hickey Chapel is assisting the family with arrangements. 

In recognition of their mom's passion for education (and in lieu of flowers), the family requests that contributions in memory of Mary be made to St. Anthony de Padua Catholic School (for technology improvements in the school's computer laboratory), 2310 E. Jefferson Boulevard, South Bend, IN 46615.

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