Anastasia Petrenko Jurkiw

Anastasia "Anna" Petrenko Jurkiw, aged 85, formerly of Niles, MI passed away peacefully Monday evening, March 1, 2010. If you happened to sit down at a park bench with Anna, you would soon be pulled in to her sweetness, her generosity, her feistiness, her acceptance of life and its practicalities.    She would tell you of her great joy of the gifts of her two grandchildren, Cassie and Todd, and then her unending devotion to her great grandchildren, Max, Asa, Nathan and Jack (with an ever present package of M & M's).  She would minimize her own story of her hard-working life, including the fact that until the age of 82 she ran her own tree nursery, perhaps giving away more plants than selling.  People would come back just to visit with her and then leave with a few more plants than they thought they were coming for.  When you left that bench, you would smile remembering the sparkle in her eye at some simple joy that she was remembering or perhaps the anticipation of a little fun at the casino or a trip to see her grandchildren.  Somehow, when you left her, you would feel better.   Anastasia  was born on December 26, 1924, in the Ukraine, to the late Anton and Hannah (Buhai) Stepanenko.  A resident of Niles, MI  since 1950, she and her first husband, Yuhym Petrenko, worked hard to build their  home and then start their own landscaping and nursery business, all the while she worked full time assembling electronic parts at Electro-voice in Buchanan, MI. and being an active and supportive  member of the Holy Trinity Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Goshen, IN. and a dear friend to many.   After her first husband passed away, she married John (Ivan) Jurkiw.  In 2007, she moved to the Grand Rapids area to be closer to her daughter and son-in-law, where in her typical manner, she made friends quickly at the Bayberry Farms Apartments.  She is survived by her daughter, Katherine (Max) Slisher, Hudsonville, MI;  step-daughter, Lucy (Michael) James, New London, NH; grandchildren, Todd (Valerie Harrison) Slisher and Cassie (Matt Davis) Slisher; four great-grandchildren, Max and Asa Davis and Jack and Nathan Slisher; and a sister, Pauline. She was preceded in death by her first husband, Yuhym Petrenko; second husband, Ivan Jurkiw; and three sisters. Anna will be laid to rest on Saturday, March 6.  Visitation and funeral services will both be held at the Yoder-Culp Funeral home.  Friends may visit at 11:00 a.m. until 12:30 and funeral service will begin at 1:00 with graveside service following at Oakridge Cemetery.      Memorial contributions may be made to the American Heart Association.