Maria A. Stevanovic
February 2, 1926 - February 16, 2016
She excelled at finding joy in the small things of life.
February 2, 1926 - February 16, 2016
She excelled at finding joy in the small things of life.
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Maria A. “Mary” Stevanovic, 90, passed away Tuesday (Feb. 16, 2016) at home, surrounded by family.
Mrs. Stevanovic was born on Feb. 2, 1926 in Tusla, Bosnia (formerly Yugoslavia) to Henreich and Anna Dazer. With the onset of World War II, she was required to relocate to Germany with her family and at the conclusion of the war, moved to England. On Aug. 2, 1951, in Halifax, England, she married Slavko Stevanovic. Maria and her husband eventually settled in Canada and gained their citizenship there. Though she has lived in the United States since 1972, she has proudly remained a Canadian citizen. Slavko predeceased her on Nov. 21, 1996. Maria is survived by a daughter, Nada (Dennis) Grastorf of Wellsville; a son, Paul (Ann) Stevanovich of Dallas, Texas; five grandchildren, Jasmine (Jered) Heaney and Alicia (Bryan) Brockway, both of Wellsville, Melissa (Joseph) Shafer of Cuba and Milan Stevanovich and Bianca Jimenez, both of Dallas, Texas; and seven great grandchildren, Quinn Heaney, Brody Heaney, Alayna Grastorf, Cooper Brockway, Lydia Brockway, Calvin Shafer and Andrew Shafer. She was predeceased by all eleven of her brothers and sisters. Mary, as she was known by most and “Baba” to her grandchildren, was a devoted homemaker to her husband and family. She excelled at finding joy in the small things of life. She loved to cook and many of her recipes included that “Old European” flavor. A couple of the family favorites were cabbage rolls and “Baba Chicken”. She had a long and enduring appreciation of classical music. Mary never possessed a driver’s license but she was content to let others get her to where she needed to go. She loved telling stories, and with such a rich and varied life, she had lots of stories to tell. The highlight of each year, were the annual summer trips she made from her home in Phoenix to visit her family in Belfast. They would often travel to Niagara Falls together or simply spend time making memories at home. There will be a time of visitation from 6-8 p.m. on Thursday at Baker-Swan Funeral Home, 3256 Riverside Drive in Wellsville. The funeral service will be held on Friday at 11:00 a.m. at the funeral home with Rev. Jeremy Gorham of the CrossTown Alliance Church, officiating. Burial will follow in Sacred Heart Cemetery in Wellsville. |
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