Judith R. Marciniak

Judith R. Marciniak

On Tuesday, the 23rd of February 2021, Judith Ann Roberts Marciniak, loving wife and mother of three children, passed away at the age of 79.

JUDY’S FRIENDS AND FAMILY WILL GATHER AT 11 A.M. ON FRIDAY, JULY 9, 2021 AT ST. MARY'S OF THE LAKE IN WATKINS GLEN FOR A MASS, FOLLOWED BY A CELEBRATION OF HER LIFE AND LEGACY AT THE ELKS LODGE IN WATKINS GLEN.

She is survived by her husband Dr. Robert Marciniak and her three children Adam (Alisa), Catherine (Kevin), and Matthew (Julia). She graduated from Hood College in Maryland and held a Master’s in Education from Elmira College in New York.

Judy was passionate about her family and supporting her community. As a teenager, she lifeguarded at the Glen Motor Inn in Watkins Glen, NY. As a young adult she was a social worker in both Baltimore and Philadelphia. While raising three children, she opened the first Cornell Cooperative Branch for Children in Montour Falls, NY, managed her husband's medical practice, and was even a frequent substitute teacher. Judy also liked to support and run numerous local events like church bazaars and sports boosters like the Watkins Glen Wrestling Invitational (later the Mike Watson Memorial Tournament).

She made and maintained very strong and close personal relationships throughout her life. Many of them were with a group of girls from Watkins Glen who kept their friendships active throughout their lives with the annual "Fugawee" meeting. The stories regaled, the new memories created, and laughter heard was always something she looked forward to every year.

Judy grew up in Watkins Glen on 7th Street. She left Watkins in her junior year of high school to attend the Northfield School for Girls in Massachusetts, graduating in 1959. After attending college in Maryland, she returned home to marry her sweetheart, who she had known since the 8th grade. The two of them grew up living only a block away from one another, Judy on 7th Street and Bob on 8th Street. Judy and Bob married on July 10, 1964. They enjoyed a wonderful life together living in various locations such as Philadelphia, Colorado Springs, El Paso, Watkins Glen, and finally retiring, splitting time between Lakeland, Florida in the winter and Watkins Glen in the summer.

Most of all, Judy was the best mom three children could ever imagine. There was always love (to include tough love), uplifting conversations, sit-down home cooked meals every day, cheering at every sporting event her children attended regardless of bad weather and long wait times. She kept a home filled with her personal touches and forever had a head full of paint speckles from her endless days of remodeling and Do It Yourself (DIY) projects. She was a true pioneer for HGTV. She made every holiday special and full of family tradition which lives on in her children’s homes.

She leaves behind a library's worth of books (as there was hardly a time she did not have one in her hand), a lasting love of Helen Reddy’s “I am Woman,” and a living legacy with eight grandchildren: Ally, Connor, Max, Alex, Alivia, Anneke, Hannah, and Alena.