Rosemary N. (Candia) Berish, 74, of Bethlehem, passed away December 14, 2018. She was the loving wife of 30 years to Andrew Berish. Born in Allentown, she was the daughter of the late Mario and Mary (Schramek) Candia. Rosemary graduated from Dieruff High School in 1961. She retired from the US Postal Service’s Personnel and Safety Office after 30 years of service. Rosemary was a member of St. John the Baptist Slovak Catholic Church and was part of their knitting group. She volunteered for Lehigh Valley Hospital Muhlenberg. Rosemary enjoyed baking and cooking and loved all of her dogs. She was a dedicated wife, mother, grandmother and great grandmother that will be deeply missed.

Survivors: husband- Andrew Berish; daughters- Mary Ann Rupp and husband Joel W. Rupp Sr., Denise Watro and husband Gregory Watro; grandchildren- Tiffany Kushner, Joel Rupp Jr., Tyler Dornblaser, Stephanie Kutzler and Greg Watro; great grandchildren- Collin, Nyla, Joel III, Chace, Sierra, Nora and Athena; many dear nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her sister- Elaine Stoudt and brother- William Candia.

A viewing will be held Wednesday, Dec 19th 6-8PM and Thursday, Dec 20th 8:30-9:30AM in Kohut Funeral Home, Inc. 950 N. Front St. Allentown, PA 18102. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10AM Thursday in St. John the Baptist Slovak Catholic Church 924 N. Front St. Allentown. Burial to follow in Bethlehem Memorial Park.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made in Rosemary’s memory to Lehigh Valley Hospice or to the American Cancer Society Local Branch care of the funeral home.

Francis J. Biszek, 80, of Allentown, passed away July 13, 2018 in his home. Born in Bethlehem, he was the son of the late Frank Kush and Frances (Alban) Biszek. Francis served in the U.S. Marines Corp. He retired from G.E. and was a member of Ss Peter and Paul Polish Catholic Church.
Survivors: niece- Roseann Danilovitz and cousins, great nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his sister- Theresa Cernobyl.
A graveside service will be held on Monday, July 23rd at 10AM in Sacred Heart Catholic Cemetery, located off of Fullerton Ave in Whitehall. Arrangements entrusted to Kohut Funeral Home, Inc.

Joseph Geza Benkovic of Nazareth passed away Wednesday, November 8, 2017. Joseph was born in Allentown to the late Joseph Benkovic and Mary (Bolez) Benkovic. He is predeceased by his sister Joan and survived by a brother Nicholas.
Joe, who was also known as “Fats”, was a well-known local musician who was widely respected for his talent on lead guitar and accordion. He was a member of numerous local bands for 50 plus years. He enjoyed participating in the 40th anniversary reunion for the band “Uproar” at Musikfest, which was a big success.
Joe was a passionate and skilled fisherman who spent many hours reeling in catches at the Lehigh River and anywhere else he could cast his line. He enjoyed fishing with friends and his grandson Connor.
Joe was a loving husband, father, and grandfather. He was a beloved uncle to many nieces and nephews and played an especially large role in the lives of his nieces Nichole Treiber and Jennifer Soriano. He was affectionately known as “Poppy Joe” to Nichole’s daughters Tylar and Alexandra.

Survivors: Wife - Kathleen (Kate Kotran) Benkovic, Daughters - Corina K Cook wife of Peter Cook of Nazareth, Krista M Kuczynski wife of Edward Kuczynski of Bethlehem and Grandson Connor Cook.

Services: A viewing will be held Tuesday, Nov 14th 6-8PM and Wednesday, Nov 15th 9-10AM in Kohut Funeral Home, Inc. 950 N. Front St. Allentown, PA 18102. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Wednesday, Nov 15th at 10:30AM in St. John the Baptist Slovak Catholic Church 924 N. Front St. Allentown, PA 18102. Burial will be Private at a later date.

Elizabeth G Billy, 91, a resident of Fellowship Assisted Living, passed away Thursday March 24. Born in Taylor, Pa on October 21,1924, to her late parents Peter and Kathleen Gaidula. She married Charles Billy in June 1945 and they lived in Allentown, Pa. He passed away in January 1984. They had 4 children- Bonita (fr. andrew) Koufopoulos, Donna (Richard) Myers, Charles (Chris) Billy and Bruce (Kathy) Billy. They had 11 grandchildren-Tatianna and Christopher, Rebecca, Richard and Jennifer, Allegra, Chad, and Jared, and Shawn and Kaitlyn. 9 great-grandchildren- Asher, Bristol, and Selah, Crue, Landyn and Tennyson, Lily and Caiden, and Dalton. She is also survived by her 3 sisters, Rosie Jung, Jeanette Martin, and Ruth Gibbs, brother- William Gaidula
and many nieces and nephews. Services: She was always very active in her church. Services will be held Tuesday at St. Mary's Ukrainian Orthodox Church 1045 Fullerton Ave Allentown, PA. It will be officiated by Fr. Andrew Koufopoulos and Fr Anthony Perkins, Liturgy will be at 10:30 with open viewing 9:30-10:30 prior to the service. Graveside services immediately following. In lieu of flowers, donations can be sent to Heartland Hospice of Allentown or Fellowship Community of Whitehall. Arrangements entrusted to Kohut Funeral Home, Inc.

Lorraine A. (Ritter) Becker, 80, of Allentown, passed away March 18, 2016. Born in Allentown, she was the daughter of the late Joel and Alice (Benz) Ritter. She retired from Western Electric after over 38 years of service. Lorraine was a volunteer coordinator at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church for their Thanksgiving dinner. When she was young she enjoyed doing the Jitterbug. Lorraine cherished her family and loved vacationing in Louisiana with her companion Jim Peel. She also loved Engelbert Humperdinck and Dancing with the Stars.

Survivors:
Daughters- Debra Loch and companion Eric Bergman, Donna Becker; Grandsons- David Loch and fiancé Jennifer Malcolm, Daniel Loch and girlfriend Caitlin Schultheis; Great Grandchildren- Logan, Allie and Cody; Brother- Donald Ritter, retired missionary and wife Liz Ritter.
She was predeceased by her brother- Gary Ritter.

A Calling time will be held on Wednesday March 23rd, 5-6PM with a Celebration of Lorraine’s Life at 6PM in St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church 38 S 8th St, Allentown, PA 18101.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Lorraine’s memory to a charity of one’s choice. Arrangements entrusted to Kohut Funeral Home, Inc.

Dolores A. (Poulton) Blauert, 95, previously of Naples, FL and Manassas, VA, passed away Sunday, March 6, 2016. She was the loving wife of the late Otto K. Blauert. Born in Oswego, NY she was the daughter of the late Aleksi and Caroline (Wapen) Poulton.

She is survived by her children Gary (Janelle) Blauert of NM, Maryann Blauert of NH, Peter (MaryLouise) Blauert of PA, Mark Blauert of VA, John (Cassie) Blauert of CA and Susan (Jim) Cousounis of PA; grandchildren Russell Blauert, Scott Blauert, Stephen Blauert, Marissa Sweitzer, Jonathan Blauert, Christopher Blauert, Shelby Blauert, Nicole Cousounis, Kyle Blauert, Karlee Blauert and Kelli Blauert; step-grandchildren Maleah and Mariah Lopez; and great grandchildren Lincoln, Tyler and Olivia Blauert and Theodore Blauert.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated April 9th at 12PM in Epiphany of Our Lord Catholic Church 3050 Walton Rd Plymouth, PA 19462 with a calling time to be held 11:15-11:45AM previous in the church. Burial will take place at Arlington National Cemetery with her husband.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made in Dolores’ memory to St.Jude Childrens Research Hospital.

George P. Bittenbender, 68, of Allentown, passed away February 17, 2016. Born in Allentown, he was the son of the late Agnes S. (Novasat) and George H. Bittenbender. He worked for Bethlehem Steel as a millwright and then for PP&L Electric as a lineman until his retirement. He was a member of St. John the Baptist Slovak Catholic Church, participating in their weekly Mass. George was an avid bowler and an animal lover. He was an active rescuer of dogs and other animals.

Survivors:
Children- Matthew Bittenbender h/o Beth of Muncy, Andrea Ritter of Allentown; Grandchildren- Jeremy Alex Ritter, Keira Susan Bittenbender, Sophie Marie Bittenbender; sister- Judy Ensor of TX; brother- James Bittenbender of Germansville; 5 nieces and nephews; 2 dogs- Sasha and Gretchen.
He was predeceased by infant daughter - Paula.

A calling time will be held on Monday 9-10AM in Kohut Funeral Home, Inc. 950 N. Front St. Allentown, PA 18102. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Monday at 10:30AM in St. John the Baptist Slovak 924 N Front St. Allentown, PA 18102.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in George’s memory to his favorite cause the Mid-Atlantic Great Dane Rescue League PO Box 285 Hanover, MD 21076.

Esther Mae Boykas (Price), 88, passed away on February 11th in her home surrounded by the love of her family. A wonderful mother to Diane, and thrilled to be a grandma to twins Jarod and Makenna and Alexandra, she was predeceased in 2012 by her beloved husband of 57 years, William. Born in Center Valley to the late Henry and Florence (Keck) Price, Esther left school after 8th grade (later earning her GED) to help care for her younger siblings on the family farm in Coopersburg where she enjoyed playing banjo in local churches accompanied by her sister, Mary, on the accordion.
Esther loved her family and lived her life always helping and caring for others. She could often be found outside gardening or tending to the yard with Bill, or inside cooking, baking and canning for her family and others. She was an animal lover and adored her many dogs, bunnies, chickens, sheep and assorted wildlife critters. She was very involved in her church, The Protection of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Allentown, and loved helping make pirohi there. She spent many family vacations at beaches in Florida and the Carolinas and enjoyed traveling to Elderhostels with Bill in their later years as well as swimming at the YMCA and taking long walks with the dogs.
We were all blessed to have her in our lives. Her caring spirit and gentle loving nature will be remembered forever.

Survivors: Daughter Diane and husband, Brian Peachey of Coopersburg; Grandchildren Jarod, Makenna and Alexandra; Siblings James, Robert, Ruth (Hoffman); Goddaughters, Denise Meluskey, Dawn Ireland and Diane Masters; beloved nephew, Daniel Hoffman; many nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by brothers, William, Paul, Tim, John and sister Mary Miller.

Services: A viewing will be held Tuesday, 6 to 8 pm in Kohut Funeral Home, 950 N. Front St. Allentown 18102. There will be viewing Wednesday 9:30 am followed by a funeral service at 10:00 am at the Kohut Funeral Home. Burial to follow in Laurel Cemetery, Whitehall.