Florence C. Kotek

YORK TWP. Florence C. Kotek, 77, passed away on Sunday, February 4, 2007, at home with her family by her side, after a sudden bout with cancer. A celebration of her life will held at 1 p.m. on Friday at the Etzweiler Funeral Home, 1111 E. Market St., York. Visitation will be held from 12 noon until the time of service at the funeral home. A private burial at Susquehanna Memorial Gardens will follow. Born Florence C. Matich on July 13, 1929, in Little Ferry, N.J. , the daughter of the late Nicholas and Suzanna (Podmayer) Matich, she spent the first half of her life in northern New Jersey. Florence's love for music began early on, starting with singing and piano lessons at age 9. She took singing lessons for 11 years. In addition to providing a beautiful voice for church events throughout her youth, she spent the summer of 1945, performing with an opera company on Long Island, N.Y. She graduated from Holy Trinity High School in Hackensack, N.J., in 1947. She married her husband, Jerry, on April 24, 1954. Florence worked for Belding Corticelli in New York City from 1948 to 1963, during which time she supported Jerry while he went to college and received his bachelors degree. For fun, she joined her husband regularly at the bowling alley, playing on various teams and winning several individual trophies. The couple moved to York in 1963 when Jerry got a job with the former Borg Warner. Their first daughter, Susan, was born the next year, with twins, Christine and Steven, following two years later. Florence was an active parent, volunteering at the elementary school library, transporting neighborhood children to summer baseball games and attending her children's various athletic competitions. Florence was an accomplished seamstress. She lobbied her state legislators to introduce a bill to exempt clothes patterns from state sales tax. The law passed in May of 2000. She believed strongly in the importance of voting and worked as a poll worker for five years. She also served as Minor Inspector for the 4th Ward, 1st District. Florence is survived by her husband of 52 years, Jerry A. Kotek of York; a daughter, Susan Kotek Sprague and her husband, Kevin of Dallastown, and a daughter, Tina Kotek and her partner, Aimee Wilson of Portland, Ore.; a son, Steven Kotek of York; and a brother, Nicholas Matich of Upper Montclair, N.J. She was preceded in death by her older sister, Matilda Matich. Memorial contributions may be made to Compassionate Care Hospice 2449 S. Queen St., York, PA 17402.