Edith Lukez

After living a full life centered around family, commitment, travel, and love, Edith Marie Lukez passed away in Kirtland, Ohio, on July 21 after a brief and very aggressive illness.

The first child of Edmund Stransky and Johanna Eva Kozelj, Edith was born in 1937 in Tržič, Slovenia, a beautiful mountain town in the Julian Alps. After the Second World War ended, she and her parents were first interned by and subsequently forced to flee Yugoslav Communists. After a harrowing near-death journey, they settled in the Austrian Alps in the mountain village of St. Jakob near Gurk. Edith often described her four years in Austria as one the happiest times of her long life.

As refugees, her parents could not stay in Austria permanently. After missing an opportunity to emigrate to Argentina, she and her family were awarded entry to the United States. Arriving in Ohio in 1949, Edith and her parents eventually settled into Cleveland’s St. Clair Slovenian neighborhood. She entered St. Francis Catholic High School with little knowledge of English; Edith graduated in 1955 with high honors.

She attended Case Western Reserve University and worked as a secretary at the American Gas Association in Cleveland. Shortly thereafter she met Rudy, also a Slovenian immigrant, and they were married on September 25, 1959. They started their life together in Euclid, OH and moved to Kirtland in 1966 into the house they built together; where she resided the remainder of her life. For 56 years, until Rudy’s death in 2015, they were always together.

Edith was the cornerstone of the family that grew up in Kirtland. Raising three boys in the woodlands of northeast Ohio, she always worked hard, selflessly, and faithfully to support her children’s needs, interests, and aspirations. Besides directly working with her three boys and their interests in school, scouting and sports, she diligently and enthusiastically volunteered in various roles for Kirtland’s public schools and library, while always promoting her lifelong love of books and reading.

As her three boys grew from children to professional adults with their own families, Edith was always supportive of their decisions. With Rudy, she traveled to nearly every state, cruised the Caribbean multiple times, and journeyed across Europe to retrace their stories and childhood experiences. Their travels often included visits to America’s National Parks which energized their spirits as they regaled in the majestic beauty of their adopted country.

Edith loved nature. In Kirtland, she planted many beautiful gardens and enjoyed visiting the local parks and arboretum. In her gardens, she was particularly fond of ladybugs for which her grandchildren bestowed to her the nickname “Grandma Ladybug”.

Edith is survived by her three sons and their families: Rudy of Highlands Ranch, Colorado with his wife Dana and children Jillian and Theodore, Andre of Chagrin Falls, Ohio, with his wife Cindy, and John of Morgan Hill, California with his wife Tami and children Sierra and Danica. She is also survived by her three brothers: Edmund Stransky of Willoughby Hills, Ohio; Norbert Stransky of Zionsville, Indiana, and Eric Stransky of Chardon, Ohio. Her sister, Rose Marie, died as a child in 1951.

Family will receive friends to pay tribute to and celebrate the life of Edith at The Zevnik-Cosic Funeral Home, 28890 Chardon Rd, Willoughby Hills, OH 44092 on Thursday, July 26th from 5-7 PM. A service will be held at Chapel of the Divine Word Catholic Church in Kirtland on Friday, July 27th at 10:00 AM followed by her final internment next to her beloved husband and lifelong companion Rudy at All Souls Cemetery in Chardon, OH.

For those who wish to make a memorial gift in lieu of flowers, please contribute to the Deloris C. Parsons Endowment Fund, Kirtland Public Library, 9267 Chillicothe Rd, Kirtland, OH 44094.