Helene Ella KROHN
Obituary



Observer Today

Helene Ella Socia, 89, passed away Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2008, after a lengthy illness. Born to Nelson John Krohn and Maude Lyllian Ames Krohn on Nov. 11, 1918, she was the third of four children.

After her birth in Elkton, Mich., her mother moved the family to Algonac, Mich., following her father’s untimely death in 1924.

Here she grew up and later met and married Donald Edward Socia in 1936. Together they moved to Sherman, N.Y. in the late 1940s. She was an avid gardener, loved to quilt, and was known for her humor and wit, delicious cooking, and deep spiritual faith.

Helene lovingly served the Seventh-day Adventist church as an active member, performing in various positions such as Sabbath school superintendent and head deaconess, and also volunteered in the children’s divisions throughout the years.

Mother to eight children, she spent many years as a homemaker and in various employment positions, and later co-owned Sherman Home for Adults with her daughter and son-in-law. She spent many years traveling around the United States, visiting her sisters, children and grandchildren,
and was in her seventies when she finally settled down once again in Western New York.

She is survived by her son, Dean Socia, of Port Jervis, N.Y.; six daughters: Janice Axt, Ukiah, Calif., Donna Reiner, Newburg, W.Va., Kathleen Haller, Sherman, N.Y., Merrilynn Blackmore, Soldotna, Alaska, Leone St. Hilaire, Ooltewah, Tenn. and Linda Lee Raimondo, Sherman, N.Y.

19 grandchildren and 28 great-grandchildren also survive Helene.

She was preceded in death by her husband in 1977; her son, David Socia in 1998; and her grandson, Jeffrey Reiner in 1995. Her three siblings: Nelson Krohn, Eloise Frasard, and Ann Schmichael, also preceded her in death.

Calling hours will be held at the Spitzer Funeral Home in Sherman, N.Y., on Saturday, Jan. 5, 2008, from 5 to 7 p.m.

The funeral service will be held at 7 p.m. Pastor Samuel Indreiu from the Sherman Abundant Life and Jamestown Seventh-day Adventist church and John Love, Elder of the Erie, Pa. Seventh-day Adventist church will officiate.



Learn more about the life of flag female ancestor  Helene Ella KROHN.