One of our Notable Women of Orthodoxy died recently. We wanted to share with you the eulogies from her funeral, to give you a sense of who we lost and what she meant to the church and what she will continue to mean to the church for generations to come. Here are two reflections from her parish priest and from a former student of hers:
“In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Glory to Jesus Christ.
“We couldn’t have an open casket today because of the tragic circumstance, but I know she would appreciate all the people who came to see her.
“As you know, Eleana was the librarian for St. Vladimir’s Seminary for many, many, many years. There are literally heads of churches, bishops, priests, deacons, theologians who owe so much to Eleana—research that would go on around the world, theses she would type up for them. She was truly a good servant of the Lord.
“She was also one of the first women to serve on the Metropolitan Council, first to be head of the department. She blazed the way for women in the Church, opening the door for so many to serve the Church with their own special and unique gifts and ministries. Literally, she worked with generations of people—very often with father and then the son. What a great gift Eleana was to all of us.
“If someone had a child, even years after seminary, very often the first gift they would get was from Eleana. I still have the one she sent to my two children, and God willing, they will pass it on to their children. She always remembered everyone—every person that she encountered—always a birthday card, a message, a phone call, something, because she was that type of person. She loved all those people that God had put into her life.
“And lest we forget all that she did for all of us—woe to us if we forget—because she gave all of herself to the Church and to the Seminary.
“Her retirement didn’t go the way that she wanted it to go. She ended up having to live with her sister, be a caretaker to her sister—a great caretaker to her sister—who was not always the most appreciative person. But she did it because she knew that was the right thing to do.
“She settled up in Carmel, and then we would meet once a month, and I would bring her Communion because I couldn’t go in her house. We’d meet at the local McDonald’s, and we’d sit in her car, and I’d bring her Communion and hear her confession and just be an ear for her. Whatever difficulties she had really began to wear on her.
“I hope all of us remember the Eleana sitting behind the library desk with a smile and saying, ‘Oh, I think I know where that is,’ and finding that book which probably hadn’t been taken out for God knows how many years—and remember her with such joy in her heart and love for all of you.
“When we sing Memory Eternal in the Church, we don’t sing it to God. She’s already with God, where there is no sickness, sighing, or sorrow, but life everlasting. We sing it for us—because I hate to say this, and forgive me—but we forgot about her. We forgot about Eleana, for all that she did for the Church, for the Seminary.
“And that’s why I am so thrilled that we are able to give her a dignified funeral, in a place where she can go to rest with some of her students and some of her teachers and all the people around, so that she can be with them for all eternity.
“When we sing Memory Eternal, we sing it for us, and we need to carry on that memory—for those who knew her and those whose lives were impacted by her. Tell the story of Eleana. Tell of her love and her kindness and her graciousness. Tell that to your children, and their children, and their children’s children—because someone like Eleana comes along once in a generation, and she should not be forgotten and buried in a lonely grave, but deserves all the joys of the Church.
“Those who don’t know her and didn’t know her—get to know her. So much of what you will inherit as a priest is because of some of the work that she did. None of us would be here in some of the ways, or would have some of the programs that we have, if it wasn’t for Eleana’s groundbreaking role in all of that.
“And so, when we are able to give her that dignified funeral, when we are able to sing to her Memory Eternal, when we are able to sing her to eternity, then we are doing right by her—because we are giving back, in such a small way, all that she gave to you, to us.
“The gifts she gave to the Church need to be passed on to the next generation. There are so many stories that I’m sure many of you can talk about—how she touched your life. I’ve been contacted by bishops from literally around the world who say, ‘Oh yeah, she typed my thesis,’ ‘Oh yeah, she helped my research,’ ‘Oh yeah, she was there for me when I was going through difficult times.’ She was truly a handmaiden of the Lord.
“So, my dear sisters and brothers, we bury her with sadness, but with great joy. We also have great joy that she was part of our lives. And may her memory be eternal. Amen. Glory to Jesus Christ.”
--Fr. Eric Tosi
“In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen. Glory be to Jesus Christ.
“I first want to share greetings from His Grace, Bishop Benedict, who—though he couldn’t be here today—shared his own stories of working with Eleana through the bookstore, editing materials, and how she would make materials available for that work.
“I’d also like to thank Fr. Eric for the ways, known and unknown, that you have reached out to Eleana over these years in her retirement. It was also a great blessing.
“I just want to offer a couple of additional vignettes of being with Eleana. When I was a seminary student and the library was in the old space by the women’s dorm, the summer I was there they were moving from regular shelving that they had outgrown long before to compact shelving. So all summer long Eleana was back and forth with books and getting shelving in and pulling things out of nooks and crannies that I didn’t know existed at the Seminary—just continuing to work away at preparing that collection so that it could continue to be a resource to all of us at the Seminary until now, the beautiful library that has been built since that time.
“And the other reflection is that, though she was busy doing all the things that the library needed—as Fr. Eric said—she was never too busy to stop and be excited about any research or any undertaking that students were pursuing. She would immediately bring up a number of titles that would be helpful for us to use in our exploration.
“But the most important thing that I recall from Eleana during my seminary years was oral history. Oral histories were just coming into being, and Eleana was so enthusiastic about oral history—to tell the story of a parish, of an institution, or whatever it was—but to tell the story, record it, and preserve it. She was a huge proponent of that, and it was a great blessing to have been at a mission, to turn the corner from those who were founding the mission to the next generations, to those who were going to follow along—and, in reflection of her enthusiasm, doing an oral history so that the voices of those who were involved at that point in time could be remembered and heard for generations to come.
“She was truly a humble servant of the Church who never ceased giving her life for the life of the Church. So it is a great blessing and joy to be here today and to sing her soul to heaven. We pray that she will now find rest after all of that labor, all of that enthusiasm, and all the support for all of us that she has given for all of these years.
“May we emulate her example in our ministry—always, now and ever, and to the ages of ages. Glory to Jesus Christ.”
--Fr. Steven Voytovich
May she rest with the saints!
