--------------------------------------------



Family and friends had quite a few nicknames for Eileen; she was called Ikey by many, Mominski and
Gapka to her family. But over the past few years, she was affectionately known as the Old GOAT
(Greatest of All Time). In our eyes, she was just that, awesome. She grew fond of that nickname, and
she liked the fact that goats, like her, are cute, playful, resourceful, tough and hard working.
Eileen had quite the knack for making people feel welcome; she was fun to be with. She was able to
engage with just about anyone; if you met her once, you probably remembered her. Her sharp sense of
humor was always present; she could make people laugh (and sometimes shake their heads). She would
also take great joy in pulling people’s legs by telling stories that may or may not have been true; many
times you could not be sure.

Eileen was sharp as a tack through her entire life. She had the ability to pick up and retain so many
pieces of information and facts; she would consistently amaze us. She was so very curious about so
many things with a need to know. She loved reading the newspaper, watching the news, perusing the
ads for sales and bargains, and scanning a never ending supply of mail order catalogs for new items and
gadgets. Then, she discovered the Internet. Her Kindle grew to be her friend when she needed to look
up some bit of information regarding health, wellness, gardening, new products, etc.
As co-owner of Hopewell Foodland and Vanadium Rd. Foodland, she enjoyed working with her husband,
Jack, in the business. Without any formal training, she kept the books and the back end operation
flowing smoothly.

She was fiercely and proudly independent. She did not want to be a burden on anyone and that
independent spirit served her well up to her last days. Regardless of any personal or health obstacle
thrown in her way throughout her life, she figured out a way to plow through and make things better for
herself (and others). Living on her own for the last 27 years, her workarounds were classic, resourceful
and sometimes funny.

She was certainly one of a kind and we will miss her terribly. Our hearts are broken to not have her here
with us, but so happy she is where she has wanted to be for a long time!

Here is a poem, written by Mom a couple months ago, that we found today in her kitchen table pile of
‘important’ papers:

Don’t cry for me my Family & Friends,
I had a good time on this earth.
Oh. I had my ups & downs,
but most of them were on the up.

I don’t know where I’m going,
but I know we will meet again.
So give me a smile
and send me on my way.

I love my Family, my Friends and even my Enemies.
So, I won’t say good bye,
I’ll just say so long till we meet again.

So with a wave of your hand - blow me a kiss,
As this is the end.
So long - so long - so long
Till we meet again.