Lorraine Joan Schovitz

AUBURN — Lorraine Joan Schovitz, 81 — devoted wife, mother, and grandmother — passed away peacefully in her beloved sun room overlooking the garden of her home on Sunday, July 15.

A Maine resident since 1991, she resided at Edgewood Condominiums, Auburn.

A deeply religious Catholic all of her life, she was a member of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish, Sacred Heart Church of Auburn.

Born in Taylor, Pa., on June 5, 1937, Lorraine was the only child of Michael and Anastasia (Kazmerick) Duchak.

Her compassion for all animals began at a very early age with her live-in grandmother, Anna, who would befriend and provide for animals of all kinds from their neighborhood. Lorraine remained an animal lover throughout her entire life, caring for many along the way, never forgetting even the crows who frequented her backyard.

A 1954 graduate of Taylor High School, she urged her father to convince her first teacher to allow her to begin grammar school a year early to be with her friends.

On Feb. 8, 1958, Lorraine married Joseph Stanley Schovitz at Saint John the Baptist Church in Taylor, Pa. The newlyweds lived in Tacoma before returning to their home state in 1959. They remained nearly inseparable in 60 decades of marriage.

Lorraine began her extensive secretarial career in the financial department of the Ukrainian Workingmen’s Association, Scranton, Pa., and was later employed at the Milton bureau office of the Daily Item, Sunbury, Pa. where she worked for over two decades. After moving to Auburn, she worked as a makeup and fine jewelry specialist at J.C. Penney. She often said the best part of her jobs was having the opportunity to meet and interact with so many nice people. She enjoyed cooking traditional Slovak family recipes, homemaking, and prided herself in always looking her best and keeping a beautiful home.

Lorraine was predeceased by her father and mother along with her beloved husband, Joe, to whom she was a devout caregiver. Never leaving his side during his lengthy hospitalizations throughout the last four years of his life, doctors and nurses called her an “inspiration of devotion to wives everywhere”.

She is survived by her son, Joseph Michael Schovitz, his wife, Mary Anne, and their two children, Michael and Matthew, of Marlborough, Mass.

She is also survived by two sisters-in-law, Eleanor Damiani of Olyphant, Pa., and Dorothy Tota of Sayre, Pa.; as well as numerous nieces and nephews.

Lorraine, along with her beautiful smile, will be deeply missed. She would be so happy to know that her love of animals and appreciation of all living things that began all those years ago with her grandmother, Anna, lives on today in her son and grandsons.

A celebration of the Funeral Mass and interment services will be announced at a later date.