Eugenia "Jean" Shayka

Eugenia “Jean” Shayka, of Rockford, IL passed away peacefully in her home on Sunday, July 30, 2023, at the age of 100. Jean was taken from her home in her late teens and forced to work in Nazi labor camps until the end of WWII. It was there she met her husband, Stephan Shayka, and they got married on September 30, 1945. In 1949, she, her husband, and their two little children, arrived in the United States. Jean was a long-time member of Holy Family Catholic Church. She was a devoted mother to her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Her family meant the world to her. She was a lifetime gold member of the Rockford Blackhawk Athletic Club.

Jean is survived by her children, Anna (Michael) Pukacz and Myron (Carol) Shayka; grandchildren, Angie (Bryan) Bye, Kelli (Nick) Calcione, Nicole (Matt) Peterson, and Michael (Lisa) Falzone; great-grandchildren, Emma and Glenn Winchel, Gavin and Blake Calcione, James and Eve Bye, Nash and Hunter Peterson, and Jaxon Falzone; and several nieces and nephews. She is preceded in death by her husband, Stephen; parents; brothers and sisters.

A special thank you to the staff of Northern Illinois Hospice and to her at home caregiver Anna Bidula for their outstanding care of our mom.

A visitation will be on Thursday, August 3, 2023, from 9:00 – 10:00 am at Holy Family Catholic Church, 4401 Highcrest Road, Rockford, IL 61107. A funeral mass will follow starting at 10:00 am. Entombment will be in Calvary Catholic Cemetery Mausoleum. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be given to the family. Arrangements entrusted to Fitzgerald Funeral Home & Crematory, Mulford Chapel, 1860 S. Mulford Road Rockford, IL 61108. Please share memories and condolences online.