Isabelle Yacobenas

1919 - 2023

Isabelle Yacobenas

Isabelle (Zelonis) Yacobenas, formerly of Pine Street, Tamaqua, passed away peacefully at the age of 104 on Saturday, July 1, 2023, in the Mahoning Valley Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, Mahoning Township, where she was a resident for the last seven years.

Born on Saturday, May 10, 1919, in Lawrence, MA, she was a daughter of the late Bronislaw and Isabelle (Radzuikiute) Zelonis.

At the age of 2, Isabelle and her parents returned to Lithuania to help support their family. In 1937, when Isabelle was 18, her parents sent her to live with her aunt and uncle in Tamaqua, leaving her seven siblings behind.

While working in her uncle's bar, she learned English and met her late husband, Joseph J. Yacobenas, whom she married on Feb. 28, 1942. They were married for 39 years before he passed away in October 1981.

Isabelle was a dedicated wife, mother and grandmother, passing on her love for cooking, crocheting, knitting, sewing and gardening. On her 100th birthday, she said her secret to life was "no drinking, no smoking, and no chasing men." She would often say she was around for "too many years," but she was always happy to go to bingo and "wherever they take me." She also enjoyed watching the Food Network and the Game Show Network.

She was a devoted member of the former SS. Peter & Paul Parish, Tamaqua, and she cleaned the church for many years.

Surviving are a son, Joseph R. Yacobenas of Lancaster; a daughter, Alice Miller of Andreas; granddaughters, who affectionately called her Nana, Ann Marie Polinger and her fiance, Andrew M. Fritz, of Whitehouse Station, N.J., and Lisa M. Fuller, and her husband, Morgan, of Mountain Top; a great-granddaughter, Madalyn Polinger, who loves her Nana II; and a daughter, Mary Yacobenas of Philadelphia.

Isabelle was also preceded in death by her son-in-law, Gary W. Miller; and a daughter-in-law, Janis (Metzinger) Yacobenas.

Mass of Christian Burial 11 a.m. Thursday, July 6, St. John XXIII Roman Catholic Church, 307 Pine St., Tamaqua. Interment, Sky-View Memorial Park, Hometown. Call 6-8 p.m. Wednesday and 9:30-10:30 a.m. Thursday, E. Franklin Griffiths Funeral Home and Cremation Services, 655 E. Broad St., Tamaqua. Contributions in her name may be made to St. Jerome Regional School, 50 Meadow Ave., Tamaqua, PA 18252. Online condolences or a fond memory of Isabelle can be made to the family at www.griffithsfuneralhomes.com.