Lorraine Wendell Polik

Lorraine Wendell Polik, age 90, died on April 11, 2022 in her residence at Greenspring Village in Springfield, Virginia. Lorraine Catherine Wendell was born on February 4, 1932 in New York, NY to Louis James Wendell and Wilhelmina Beckers Wendell. She was also cared for as a child and teen by Katherine Marius of New York City. Lorraine attended Immaculate Conception School in Tuckahoe, NY and graduated from Eastchester High School in 1949 as the top student in her mathematics, English, and Latin classes. After high school, Lorraine moved to Denver, CO, where she obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in international relations from the University of Denver in 1957. She then spent a year in Germany as a Fulbright Scholar. Lorraine started her career as a Foreign Service Officer in the US State Department in 1958. There she met and married William Polik, also a Foreign Service Officer, and they had two children, William Frederick Polik and Michael Theodore Polik, in 1960 and 1963. The family was stationed in El Salvador, Australia, and Japan, before returning to Washington, DC. While in Japan, Lorraine earned a Master of Arts in International Business from Sophia University in 1970. Lorraine and Bill's marriage ended in divorce in 1976. After her children left for college, Lorraine continued to serve in the Foreign Service as an American Consul in Germany and Yugoslavia before returning to Washington, DC to finish her career. After retiring in 1995, Lorraine traveled extensively, enjoyed the outdoors and hiking, appreciated musical concerts and operas, regularly attended plays and art exhibitions with friends, and enjoyed taking her grandchildren on ski trips and to meals at fancy restaurants. Lorraine is survived by two sons, William (Joanne Stewart) Polik and Michael Polik, and two grandchildren, Robert Polik and Catherine Polik. A funeral mass was held at St. Bernadette Catholic Church in Springfield, VA on May 9, 2022.