Ann Oszczakiewicz conceded a valiant battle with heart disease early on the morning of February 17, 2004. She was surrounded in strength by her beloved family.
Born May 30, 1930 in San Augustine, Texas, Mrs. “O” was the sixth of seven children born to Charles Van Schoubroek and Mae Belle Dickerson. Her family moved to Beaumont and she graduated from Beaumont High School in 1947. She was preceded in death by her parents, by her beloved brother, Charles Coleman Van Schoubroek and by three of her five sisters: Ava McWilliams of Woodville, Elizabeth “Nook” Warden of Kountze and Louise “Lulu” Petit of Beaumont.
She married her precious Thomas William Oszczakiewicz, then a merchant seaman, on June 2, 1951. Together they raised five children: Julie, Suzanne, Michael, Karl and Mary.
Anna graduated from Lamar University’s nursing program with honors in 1966. She worked at Hotel Dieu and later worked at St. Elizabeth Hospital mainly as a pediatric medications nurse alongside her boss and lifelong friend Sister Fatima McCarthy.
She and her Thomas both graduated from Lamar University while raising their five young children and working. Their determination for a higher education was an accomplishment they were both proud of. They attended St. Pius X Catholic Church from its founding until her illness worsened in 1999.
Between the kids, the schools, her many fine sisters and their families, her nursing friends and all the friends of her children and grandchildren, Mrs. “O” and Aunt Ann and Mother had a continuous stream of family events, football and baseball, piano lessons, First Holy Communions, Christenings, Weddings etc… Their home was also an unofficial French High School outpost for the many years her children attended FHS.
Until her last days in the hospital, Annabel always knew where every child, grandchild, niece, nephew, sister and friend was supposed to be. When any of us were on a trip we were still required to check in on arrival and departure. Annabel could track you down in any city, state, continent, military base or cruise line. Upon contact, when the police or helicopter delivered the message to call her, she would simply nicely remind you that you should have called her to check in. The skill was akin to ESP and was honed sharply during the years her boys learned to drive.
Ann had a great love for people and she could always get an entire waiting room or plane load of people talking with her and each other in under five minutes. She could not tolerate anyone who did not put their children and family first. She was famous for spoiling her children and grandchildren. Nana’s house and care was much akin to the famed Shangri-La of Lost Horizon. It was always about the babies with her. She loved all her babies all day long. She, however, had publicly noted and very limited patience for teenagers and whiney adults.
Her varied skills included, but were not limited to: Polish Cooking for Southerners, collecting of fine jewelry, Math calculations designed to amaze engineers, midnight consults on sick children, travel of any kind especially to Nevada, tournament scrabble and crosswords with wagers, connecting a total stranger to a relative in six steps or less.
Nana, Mom, Annie, Aunt Ann, Mrs. “O”-We thank you for your uncommon unselfishness and legendary strength. Thank you for all the sacrifices you bore, like Christ, of both time and heart for others. Thank you for your imparting to us your deep Catholic Faith through good and dark times. Thank you for not taking care of yourself like you should have because you unfailingly put the rest of us first. We are sorry for your pain. Like you always said, “What goes around comes around”. Mom, you did a good job.
Ann is survived by her most loving husband of 53 years, Thomas William Oszczakiewicz; her two sisters, Elektra Faye Warden of Kountze and Tommie Zell Johnson of Mansfield; children, Julie Anna Cokinos, Suzanne Grable and her husband Richard Grable, Michael Thomas Oszczakiewicz, M.D., Karl William Oszczakiewicz and Mary Anne Lee and her husband Bryan Lee, all of Beaumont; grandchildren, Christina Marie Savoy and her husband Jason Savoy, Thomas Peter Cokinos, Kari Elizabeth Grable, Sarah Marie Oszczakiewicz, Nathalie Ann Oszczakiewicz, Nicholas Thomas Oszczakiewicz, Michelle Elizabeth Oszczakiewicz, Jennifer Nicole Oszczakiewicz, Jason Paul Oszczakiewicz, Stacey Michelle Oszczakiewicz, Gabriela Marie Oszczakiewicz, Grace Annabel Lee and Emily Elisabeth Lee; great grandchildren, Elisabeth Anne Savoy and Isabelle Nicole Oszczakiewicz
Her family thanks her many physicians and caregivers and friends and all the DuBuis and CVICU staff for all the care and prayers. Special thanks to Bishop Curtis Guillory for even more prayers last Saturday.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated 11:00 a.m. Friday, February 20, at St. Pius X Catholic Church under the direction of Broussard’s, 2000 McFaddin, Beaumont with burial to follow at Magnolia Cemetery.
Her pallbearers will be James Allums, M.D., Thomas Kirchmer, M.D., Stephen LaMendola, M.D., Terry Wayne Myrick M.D., Stephen Weatherford, M.D., Glenn Halff M.D., Allen Andress and Bobbie McWilliams. Honorary pallbearers will be David Edward Kerr, Chris Meaux and Glenn “Bo” McClelland, P.A.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to The Bishop’s Faith Appeal for the Diocese of Beaumont, P. O. Box 3948, Beaumont, Texas 77704.