She was born in Altoona, PA on August 3, 1962, daughter of the late John D. and Helen (Batkiewicz) Luddy, and oldest of their six children. She married Jeffrey R. (Sydd) Souza on October 1, 1988. They established their home in Maryland and together they raised four children.
Monica was a graduate of Bishop Guilfoyle Catholic High School in Altoona, and then attended The Pennsylvania State University, graduating with a BS in Electrical Engineering. She worked as a Systems Engineer supporting architecture, requirements and end to end operations for most of her career.
Monica was a member of the Church of the Resurrection in Ellicott City, where she was very involved in faith formation. She had a love of teaching, which she got to express as a Girl Scout Leader, Religious Education catechist, VBS leader, and in supporting adult retreats. She also loved being a grandma, and spending time with her grandchildren.
Surviving are her husband; four children: Katherine Newell (Paul) of Elkridge, Maria Souza of Baltimore, Nicole Souza (Honore) of Roselle Park, NJ, Jeffrey Souza of Metuchen, NJ; five grandchildren (Maeve, Finn, Genevieve, Lucien, and Adeline); five siblings: John (Kathy) of Omaha, NE, Kevin (Debbie) of Castle Hayne, NC, Susan McFarlin (Dan) of Island Lake, IL, Janice Viola (Paul) of Annandale, VA, Joan Miller (Bob) of Manheim, PA; and many nieces and nephews.
Friends will be received from 3-5pm and 7-9pm on Sunday, August 9th at the Gary L. Kauffman Funeral Home at Meadowridge Memorial Park, 7250 Washington Blvd, Elkridge, MD, where a vigil for the deceased will be held. A Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 11AM, August 10th, at the Church of the Resurrection, 3175 Paulskirk Drive, Ellicott City.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests contributions be made to the St. Vincent de Paul Society at Church of the Resurrection, or to your local food bank.
