Obituary of Theresa M. Krawiec

Theresa M. Krawiec, a lifelong resident of Poughkeepsie, NY and formerly of Brooklyn, NY, entered into rest Saturday, February 25, 2023 in Williamsburg, VA. She was 94. She was born April 9, 1928 to the late Josef and Bronislava Koperska Markiewicz.

She began her working career as a biochemist at Sloan-Kettering Cancer Institute, following graduation from Fordham University (Magna Cum Laude) in 1952 with a BS in Biology and a minor in Chemistry.

At St. Cyril and Methodius RC Church, Brooklyn, NY on October 3, 1953, she married Edward J. Krawiec, also of Brooklyn, NY, and in 1960, made Poughkeepsie her home to raise a family, where she became active in the community and St. Mary’s Parish, where she loved to sing in the choir. In the 1970s, she rejoined the workforce as a medical technologist at the laboratory at Highland Hospital in Beacon, NY. After several years of civilian service, she moved into government service with the Veterans Administration (VA) at Castle Point VA Hospital and then on to head the chemistry laboratory at Montrose VA Medical Center. Throughout her medical career, she was member and staunch supporter of the American Society of Medical Technologists (ASMT)/American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science (ASCLS).

In the 1980s she chose to do something different, and her love of science, research, and chemistry drew her to change careers. Not looking back, she left the medical community and joined the research, development and engineering team at IBM East Fishkill, where she experimented with microchip design, developing the cutting-edge processes and procedures for their development. She remained active with IBM, lecturing and receiving patents for her work until her retirement in April of 1993.

In the years that followed, her adventurous spirit took her abroad, traveling to the Pacific, Asia, Europe and the Middle East with her husband Ed. At home, she remained an active member of her church and community, joining the Catholic Daughters of the Americas, the Fraternal Order of Franciscan Secular, and Marist’s College of Lifetime Study, where she participated as well as organized educational and cultural programs and trips.   

On January 31, 2004, her beloved husband, Edward, preceded her in death. In 2017, she left her Poughkeepsie home of 57 years to be near her family and grandchildren in Williamsburg, Virginia where she remained until her passing.  

Survivors include her son, Paul E. Krawiec; daughter-in-law, Petra Krawiec; granddaughter, Jacqueline T. Krawiec; and grandson, Christopher J. Krawiec, all of Providence Forge, VA. She was predeceased by her daughter, Mary Taylor.

Family will receive their friends on Monday, March 6, 2023 from 4 to 7 p.m. at Straub, Catalano & Halvey Funeral Home, 55 E. Main Street, Wappingers Falls, NY 12590.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be offered at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, March 7, 2023 at St. Mary’s Church, 11 Clinton Street in Wappingers Falls. Interment will follow in St. Mary’s Cemetery, Wappingers Falls.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in Theresa’s name to Alzheimer’s Association, www.alz.org.