Irma Kurdyla

Irma Kurdyla (nee Repac), age 93, of Towaco passed away peacefully on Monday, May 16, 2022 while receiving the loving care of her family.

Irma was born and raised in Newark, NJ and was one of five children to Matus and Mary Repac.  As a young girl of five years old, Irma was running across the street when she was struck by a car. Irma was seriously hurt in the accident, and it had a profound effect on her life moving forward.  While living in Newark, Irma attended East Side High School.  After leaving high school, Irma went to work for Synthetics Plastic Company in Newark for several years.  In the late 1940’s while at the Polish Falcons of America Club in Newark, Irma met a handsome young man by the name of William Kurdyla.  William and Irma hit it off great and started dating.  As fate would have it, they fell in love and on May 19, 1951 William and Irma became husband and wife at St Casimir’s Roman Catholic Church in the Ironbound section of Newark.

After getting married, the newlyweds settled in Newark where they lived for several years.  While living in Newark, Irma and William welcomed the births of their two sons, William and Steven.   As their children grew, the family relocated to Belleville, NJ where they remained for the next fifty-one years.  Once her children were born, Irma became a became a full-time homemaker.  This was truly Irma’s calling and where she genuinely flourished.  Irma dedicated her life to her family and was always there when they needed her.  When her sons were attending grammar school, she volunteered at their school to be closer to them.

Irma enjoyed watching game shows on television and participated in bowling leagues as a young woman. One of her favorite pastimes was creating and painting ceramic statues.  So many of her friends and family members will remember receiving pink or blue teddy bears when children were born.  All of Irma’s family members had their houses decorated with painted ceramic Christmas Trees during the holiday season.  Irma and her family were parishioners of St Peter’s RC Church in Belleville for many years.  Aside from all of Irma’s talents, hobbies and interests, her greatest passion was for her family.  Nothing in the world meant more to Irma than providing for and spending time with her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren.  Irma and William cherished fifty-eight years of loving and loyal marriage until William’s passing in June of 2009.

Irma was an outgoing person who loved spending time with her family and friends.  She and her family spent many summers at the Jersey Shore and in the Poconos for vacations.  Irma was known to have a heart of gold and loved conversing with people about anything.  She had an infectious personality that always brought a smile to the people around her.  She was truly a special person who will be missed by everyone that knew her.

Irma is survived by her two sons William Kurdyla and his wife Diane of Wayne, NJ, and Steven Kurdyla and his wife Kathy of Towaco, NJ, four grandchildren; Kaitlin Kurdyla of Wayne, Kimberly Forsyth and her husband Jason of Towaco, Jenna Zamora and her husband Denis of Wayne, and Dana Lynn Kurdyla of Pompton Plains, and four great grandchildren; Delaney Kurdyla, Jake Forsyth, Natalie Forsyth, and Phoebe Zamora. She was predeceased by her husband William Kurdyla in 2009, and her siblings Joseph Repac, Pauline Bradley, Helen Belus, and Charles Repac.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Irma’s name can be made to St Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memorial Processing, 501 St Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105 – 9959 http://www.stjude.org