Obituaries

Therese ‘Terry’ Pounds (Joiner): 1927-2024

Therese “Terry” Pounds (Joiner), 97, of Montclair, NJ died peacefully surrounded by family at Mountainside Hospital on Wednesday, September 11, 2024. Beloved mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, aunt, cousin and friend, Terry was born a ‘survivor,’ having lost her mother who died soon after her birth in 1927 in New York City. She subsequently lived all over the world as a self-described “army brat” after her father, Colonel Talley Dosier Joiner, remarried and reclaimed “his little Therese” from her aunts who raised her until she was six. After graduating from Columbia High School in Maplewood, NJ, Terry briefly attended college at Trinity, DC, then decided to go to Katharine Gibbs Secretarial School in NJ. The skills she learned there served her well at her first secretarial jobs in Manhattan, then later at Montclair Kimberly Academy in Montclair where she worked for almost twenty years in the Office of External Affairs. She was proud of her mastery of the rules of English grammar, and many relied on her to proofread their letters. After the death of her husband in 1978, Terry set up a Montclair chapter of THEOS, a nationwide non-denominational support group for widowed men and women. She ran the group for approximately ten years and created friendships from that work that lasted until her death. She was also involved with the Friends of Barnet and the Montclair Fine Arts Festival.

Terry was predeceased in death by her husband, Donald Pounds, her son Richard, her beloved companions, Arthur Jones and Fred Berinato, and her sisters Lucy and Claire. She is survived by her son Donald Pounds and his companion Patrice Holtzer, daughter Mary Pounds Sisler, daughter-in-law Bette Pounds, sons James Pounds (Bethany) and Thomas Pounds (Liljana), daughter Virginia Pounds, sons Michael Pounds (Catherine) and John Pounds. She was the proud grandmother of sixteen grandchildren and five great-grandchildren: Katy, Austin, Colleen, Connor, Jordan, Jason, Jeremy, Natalie, Anika, Evan, Noah, Ben, Eli, Max, Harper and Nolan; Scarlett, Emma, Carson, Peyton and Wesley. She is also survived by a large extended family and countless friends.

Funeral Services will be held on Saturday, November 9 at 10 a.m. at Immaculate Conception Church, 30 N. Fullerton Ave., Montclair, NJ 07042, followed by interment of ashes at Immaculate Conception Cemetery in Upper Montclair.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Terry’s name to The Release Recovery Foundation at: https://donate.hakuapp.com/donations/new?fundraising_effort=in-loving-memory-of-therese-terry-pounds.

Rita Rose (Nawrocki) Bieszczad

03/29/1934 - 02/25/2025

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Obituary For Rita Rose (Nawrocki) Bieszczad

Rita Rose Bieszczad, age 90, passed away peacefully on Tuesday 25th of February 2025. Rita was born on the 29th of March 1934 to John and Frances (Kwiatkowski) Nawrocki. She was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, and friend. She will be missed terribly. Born and raised in Toledo, Ohio, Rita attended St. Stanislaus Elementary and Central Catholic High School, where she was very active; enjoying ballet dancing, singing in choir, and playing tennis at the local Scott Park with friends. In fact, she met her husband, Darrell Bieszczad, on the tennis courts where he would dutifully retrieve her tennis balls. Meeting as teenagers, they went on to share 68 years of marriage together, having four children, which they greatly enjoyed raising together.

Rita was a very caring person and devoted to her family—she loved taking care of everyone around her. Rita’s family cherished all the time they spent together. She enjoyed many things: gardening, music, nature, playing cards with friends and family, cooking, and playing with her grandchildren. Rita was a faithful member of Saint Rose Church and a devote Catholic.

Rita was beloved by her family and is survived by her three children Scott Bieszczad, Carla Eckel (Gary), and Paul Bieszczad (Lisa Managhan), as well as her granddaughters Kirsten Bieszczad, Sarah Rose Bieszczad, and Elly Bieszczad.

Rita was preceded in death by her loving husband Darrell Bieszczad and devoted son Gregory Bieszczad.

Friends and family will be received Monday, March 3, 2025 from 10-11 a.m. at St. Rose Catholic Church, 215 E. Front Street, Perrysburg, Ohio 43551 where a funeral mass will begin at 11 a.m. Burial will follow in Fort Meigs Union Cemetery.

Condolences may be made online to the family at www.walkerfuneralhomes.com.

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