Eleanor M. Puza

Eleanor M. Puza, Dalton, died Wednesday afternoon at the Abington Manor Nursing Home. She was the widow of Anthony M. Puza, who died in 1998. They were married for more than 50 years.

Born on the family farm in Lake Winola, daughter of the late Adam and Helen Kazmierski Matylewicz, she was a graduate of Falls Overfield High School in 1940. She moved to Bridgeport, Conn., and did defense work for GE until 1944 when she joined the Navy.

She trained at Hunter College in Bronx, N.Y., and went to school at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. She became a sound motion picture technician and served in Washington, D.C., and Arlington, Va. When the war ended, she came home, where she met her husband, a Marine veteran. They married in 1947. They bought a farm and settled in Glendale, where they were known for their produce.

She was a member of St. Mary of the Lake Church, Lake Winola, and the American Legion Post 457. Family came first for Eleanor. She loved to garden and knew her flowers, winning many ribbons at local fairs. She and Tony were a team in life and the farm they shared.

Surviving are three daughters, Jeanne Marie Cox, Calif.; Marlene Ann Puza, Calif.; and Cheryl Korb, Dalton; a brother, Robert Matylewicz, and two sisters, Thelma Shebby and Sally Palmer, all of Lake Winola; grandchildren, Kerry, Brooke and Kristopher; great-grandchildren, David Anthony and Veda, nieces and nephews.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Saturday at 10 a.m. in St. Mary of the Lake Church, Lake Winola, by the Rev. David Betts, associate pastor. Interment will be in St. Joseph's Cemetery, Montdale.

Friends may call today, 4 to 8 p.m., at the Lawrence E. Young Funeral Home, 418 S. State St., Clarks Summit.