Coping with Grief
We would like to offer our sincere support to anyone coping with grief. Enter your email below for our complimentary daily grief messages. Messages run for up to one year and you can stop at any time. Your email will not be used for any other purpose.
Maria (Mika) Kateryna Kondrat, age 85, of Cheltenham, PA, passed on February 26, 2022. She was preceded in death by her husband of 59 years, Peter Kondrat (+), beloved mother of Oleh Bohdan Kondrat (Zorianna +) and Oksana Maria Fedyk (Ihor). Loving grandmother of Natalia Kondrat, Peter Kondrat, Irena Kondrat, Stephen Fedyk, and Nicholas Fedyk (Lindsey) and great grandmother of twins Lukas and Simon Fedyk and Mika Rose Fedyk, who is her namesake. Also left is brother Alexander (Levko) Fedorkiw with wife Vera and children Christine, Sonia, Andrea, and Adrian and their families.
Maria was born on June 13, 1936 in Uzhorod, Ukraine to Andrew and Olha Fedorkiw.
In 1938, she immigrated with her family to former Czechoslovakia. Her family lived there until Spring 1945 when they again fled their home due to instability in Western Germany. They settled in a refugee camp located near Augsburg, West Germany. After a short time, Maria and her family moved to a Ukrainian camp located in Dillingen, Germany, where they stayed until the end of 1949. Here she continued her studies at a Ukrainian High School, took piano and ballet lessons, played volleyball, ping pong, and enrolled in the Ukrainian Scout organization PLAST.
In 1950, Maria and her family traveled to the United States of America and settled in Philadelphia. She started high school at St Basil Academy in Fox Chase, PA. After graduation she worked as a secretary at Rohach Realty and in the evening took courses at Pierce Business School. Afterwards she received her bachelor's degree at Chestnut Hill College and her Master’s degree from Beaver College (now Arcadia University).
Maria was an elementary school teacher at St Basil’s School in Philadelphia from 1965 to 1975 and a Lead Reading/Language Arts Teacher for the School District of Philadelphia from 1975 to 1998. Every Saturday for 11 years she taught adults the Ukrainian language at South Philadelphia Magnet High School. After a long and rewarding career, she retired in June of 1998.
Maria married her beloved best friend, Peter Kondrat, on February 19, 1955 and were married for 59 years. Together they were blessed with 2 beautiful children. Their son Oleh Bohdan was born in 1957 and daughter Oksana Maria was born in 1960. They raised their children to be Christians, to love the language and culture of their ancestors, and to thank God that they were raised in a free country where they could freely live and forge their future.
Beyond her responsibilities at school and home, Maria also contributed her time and talent to the Ukrainian community. She became a member of several parent boards and took on many responsibilities. Maria was a member of the Ukrainian National Women's League of America (UNWLA). At first, she was the president of the local branch and then became president of the Philadelphia chapter. She was a board member of the Ukrainian Educational and Cultural Center (UECC) where she was responsible for organizing and implementing an adult curriculum relating to cultural interests. She applied for and received state grants for the benefit of both teachers and students. Maria was also a board member and served as Treasurer and Vice President at the Ukrainian Selfreliance Federal Credit Union (UKRFCU).
Maria loved to read books, write poetry, draw, play the piano and do embroidery. She loved her church, Ukraine, America, and her close friends and family. She traveled with her husband and visited many countries in Europe and Asia. She also traveled to her beloved homeland Ukraine 11 times. In 1969, she traveled with her family across the United States through British Columbia. Most memorable was vacationing every summer in Wildwood, NJ with her children and grandchildren.
Relatives and friends are invited to her viewing on Tuesday (March 1, 2022) 9AM to 9:45AM (Panakhyda 9:45) and Requiem liturgy 10AM at Annunciation BVM Ukrainian Catholic Church, 1206 Valley Rd., Melrose Park, Pa 19027. Int. St. Mary Ukrainian Catholic Cemetery, Elkins Park, Pa.
In lieu of flowers donations in her memory may be offered to any of the following: Ukrainian Educational and Cultural Center, 700 N Cedar Rd, Jenkintown, PA 19046; Annunciation BVM Ukrainian Catholic Church, 1206 Valley Road, Melrose Park, PA 19027; Tryzub Ukrainian American Sports Center, P.O. Box 346, Horsham, PA 19044.
To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Maria K. (Fedorkiw) Kondrat, please visit our floral store.