Blanche Therese Kohanski

Blanche Therese Kohanski left this world in peace on November 27, 2013 at Brookdale Place, Colorado Springs, CO, where she had resided since 2012, after 46 years in Flemington, NJ. She is survived by four children and their spouses, Joseph Kohanski, Jr. and Debra Cherry of Los Angeles, CA, Janis and Richard Pappalardo of Bethesda, MD, Joan and Pete Jahelka of Colorado Springs, CO, and John and Joyce Kohanski of Ringoes, NJ, and by seven grandchildren. Joseph, Jr. and Debra Cherry were at her side when she passed.

Blanche was born in Paterson, NJ on May 21, 1927 to Agatha and Clement Ragauskas, whom had emigrated from Lithuania. As a young girl, she was a self-proclaimed tomboy who loved camping next to bonfires at Lithuanian potato roasts, excelled in school, and sang Lithuanian hymns in the church choir. She met the love of her life, Joseph Kohanski, Sr. at a Lithuanian church picnic. They were united in marriage at St Casimir’s R.C. Church in Paterson, NJ on May 16, 1954, and remained devoted to one another until Joe’s death in 2012.

Blanche graduated from the St. Joseph's Hospital School of Nursing and attended New York University. She cherished the world of ideas, was an avid reader in English and Lithuanian, and believed in the power of education as the key to enlightenment and independence, because “Education is the one thing that no one can ever take from you.” No matter how busy, she wrote yearly Christmas letters in Lithuanian to cousins who were living behind the “Iron Curtain,” and later learned that each letter had been saved in a special box, as a cherished link between East and West. With the fall of the Soviet Union, she became a champion for Lithuanian independence, marching in Washington DC and working with her husband to promote the cause. In 1994, they were honored for this work by Americans for Independent Lithuania, U.S.A.

Blanche was industrious and thrifty. During high school, she worked at a drug store, and although her true passions were science and English, she followed a practical commercial track that led to stenography and bookkeeping. She changed course to become a registered nurse, beginning as an industrial nurse at Kearfott Co. and later moving to work at RCA. Blanche ceased nursing when she and Joe Sr. moved to Atlantic Highlands, NJ to raise their family. When a change in the train schedule necessitated a move to Kearny, NJ, she resumed her nursing career, working part-time at West Hudson Hospital. Her family eventually settled in Flemington, NJ, where Blanche specialized in geriatric nursing, first at Union Forge Nursing Home and later at the VA Hospital in Lyons, NJ. Nursing colleagues recall her unwavering devotion, intelligence, and compassion, which she showed by bringing patients flowers from her garden to let them know that they were cherished. When Blanche retired from nursing, she became a playground aid at the elementary school adjacent to her home. She enjoyed being with the children, and always championed those in need and who had been “left-out.”

Blanche was a devoted and beloved wife, mother, and grandmother, who took great pleasure in the accomplishments of her spouse, children, and grandchildren. She often said that parents are a child’s first teachers, and she relished helping her offspring learn new things. She kept the house stocked with books and newspapers, urged that 4-H projects demonstrate “110% effort,” and worked to provide for music lessons and college expenses. She and Joe, Sr. frequently visited with their children wherever they lived, and developed deep, lasting relationships with their friends. Blanche will always be remembered for her cozy, welcoming kitchen, pumpkin pies, singing around the piano, vases overflowing with hydrangeas, political debates, and an endless supply of peppermint lifesavers. She will also be remembered for creating a home where there was always room for one more guest at the table. Although dementia took hold during her later years, Blanche’s passion for music, love of reading, love of family, and devotion to the Catholic faith endured, revealing the strength of her character and the power of the human spirit. Perhaps she will be remembered most for the enduring love that she shared with Joseph Kohanski, Sr., her polka partner for 58 years, with whom she will be laid to rest.

Friends and relatives of Blanche and Joseph Kohanski are invited to gather at Holcombe-Fisher Funeral Home, 147 Main Street, Flemington, NJ on Friday, December 27 from 5:30 PM until 7:30 PM. A Funeral Mass will be held at St. Magdalen de Pazzi R.C. Church, 105 Mine Street, Flemington, NJ on Saturday, December 28, at 10 AM, with interment to follow at St. Magdalen’s cemetery. Mourners are invited to join the family for a Repast at the Harvest Moon Inn, 1035 Old York Road, Ringoes, NJ.

Any act of kindness to honor Blanche’s life is appreciated, particularly support of Hunterdon County 4-H, 6 Gauntt Pl, Flemington, NJ 08822, the Knights of Lithuania Foundation, 2557 East Ontario Street, Philadelphia, PA 19134, or the Alzheimer’s Association, P.O. Box 96011, Washington, DC 20090-6011.