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Wanda K. Symasko of Holyoke, Massachusetts, a frequent visitor and summer resident of Southampton, died on June 25 at her Massachusetts home. She was 88.
She was born in February 1920 in Holyoke to Bertha (née Sokolowska) and Peter Kisiel, the first couple to be married in the then newly founded Our Lady of Poland Roman Catholic Church in Southampton.
A graduate of Holyoke High School, she attended Mount Holyoke College and earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from American International College. She went on to earn a master’s degree in education and special reading from the University of Massachusetts, where she was inducted into the university’s Phi Kappa Phi honor society in 1967. An accomplished public speaker and musician, she was awarded the Garrison Trophy for public speaking and played her violin at Carnegie Hall while in college.
After a short-lived career as the social editor for the former Holyoke Transcript Telegram newspaper, she began teaching at local Holyoke grammar, secondary and high schools, where she initiated specialized reading programs and clinics. Although she was offered an appointment to the superintendent’s office, she remained in the classroom until her retirement.
A communicant at the Mater Dolorosa Church in Holyoke, she was one of the founders of its Parent Teacher Association. In Southampton, she attended Our Lady of Poland Roman Catholic Church. Mrs. Symasko’s son, Peter W. Symasko, maintains the family home in Southampton, where he was born.
She is survived by her husband, Anthony Symasko, who cared for her at home as she wished; and two sons, wildlife biologist and ecology professor Anthony J. Symasko III of Massachusetts, and retired Naval officer and architect Peter W. Symasko of Massachusetts and Southampton.
Funeral services were held at the Mater Dolorosa Church in Holyoke. Interment was at the Mater Dolorosa Cemetery in South Hadley, Massachusetts.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations to Our Lady of Poland Church, 35 Maple Street, Southampton, NY 11968 would be appreciated by the family.
on Jul 7, 2008