Irene Marie Conley

Irene Marie Conley, aged 89, passed away on October 27, 2014 at Rex Hospital due to congestive heart failure. She had been living at Magnolia Glen in Raleigh for the last four years, after the death of her husband of 58 years, John Edward Conley, in 2010.

Irene was a wonderful wife, mother and accomplished homemaker. She loved and is survived by four children, thirteen grandchildren, one great grandchild, and many nieces and nephews. They all cherished her in return. The children are Avis (Jim) Hayden of East Arlington, VT, Colleen (Kevin) Ely of Youngsville, NC, Kevin (Patsy) Conley and Neal Conley, both of Raleigh. The grandchildren are Jake and Dana Ely, Wesley and Kendra Hayden, Jaimie (Philip) Althage, Regina (Tomas) Bethencourt , William Conley, Angela (Ryan) Sullivan, Jack, Lucy, and Susan Conley; also, Bryn and Taryn Conley. Jeannette Conley pre-deceased her. The great grandchild is Daniel Sullivan.

Irene had a full and varied life. She followed her husband’s career with General Electric from Bloomington, MN to Milwaukee, WI to Glen Ellyn, IL, and finally to Stratford, CT, where she lived for 40 years. She was an active member of St. Mark Catholic Church.

She was born Irene Uchman in Adams, Massachusetts to Jakub and Aniela Kaszybska Uchman on May 30, 1925. Her parents both emigrated from Poland as teenagers in the early 1900s, and met at church in Adams. Her father worked in a textile factory. Nine of Irene’s 10 siblings pre-deceased her: Josephine, Wanda, Jessica, Frank, Jean, Steve, Casimir, Daisy Ann, and Joseph, who was Irene’s twin. A brother, Mike, survives.

She attended St. Stanislaus Kostka School through the 8th grade, where she learned, among things, Polish and perfect cursive handwriting, both skills that she retained all her years. She graduated from Adams High School in 1943, and then went to work at the local General Electric plant as part of the war effort. After the war, she met her husband, who was an engineer at the plant, and who had served with the US Army in Europe.

A great highlight of her life was a visit to Poland in 2000, where she saw the parish churches of her mother and father in their respective hometowns of Jazowa and Zolynia, both in the southeastern part of that country.

Irene lived up to her name, which comes from the Greek word for “peace”. She truly was a peacemaker, and for that she is blessed, according to the promise of her Lord and Savior. Her favorite Polish saying was, “Takie zycie”, which translates as “Always Somethin’”.

Visitation will be held at Mitchell Funeral Home (7209 Glenwood Avenue in Raleigh, NC) from 5-7 pm on Saturday, November 8, 2014. A Memorial Mass will be celebrated at 11 am on Saturday, November 22, 2014 at St. Stanislaus Kostka Church (25 Hoosac Street in Adams, MA), with a graveside service to follow.

She requested that any donations be made to St. Stanislaus Kostka School -108 Summer St. - Adams, MA 01220.

Condolences to the family at www.MitchellatRMP.com