“She Hated Men With a Passion!”

Jadwiga Jurkiewicz was born on December 26, 1906 in Pennsylvania to Polish immigrants, but she later changed her name to Judy Jurka. She was one of six children, including two sets of twins, of which Judy was one. At age three, however, Judy’s twin died, possibly of the flu epidemic.  Likewise, when Judy was six, her mother also died, leaving her father distraught and unable to care for the five remaining children. His sister came to live with them for a while, but she eventually had to return to her own family, leaving the father again confused and grieving.

Not knowing what to do, Judy’s father turned to his parish priest, who advised him to put the children in an orphanage. This was quite common in the early part of the last century. Many children in orphanages actually had living parents who for one reason or another couldn’t care for their children and so sent them away. Judy and her sisters were separated from her brothers and placed in two different facilities. Judy’s father visited often, but he, too, died young, making them true orphans.

When Judy turned sixteen, the nuns at the orphanage sent Judy to St. Mary of Nazareth School of Nursing in Chicago. Judy did well there and made many friends and eventually became a nurse. She had learned how to do fancy embroidery work at the orphanage and continued to do it as a hobby even after she left. She enjoyed it so much that she formed a sewing circle with some of the other nursing students at St. Mary, and it was at about this time that she met her life-long friend, Alice Shaw.

Alice, it seems, was the opposite of Judy, who was a very independent, tough, private person, perhaps because she needed to be to survive all those years in the orphanage.  Alice was the more compassionate of the two friends, and she often acted as a sounding board to Judy’s rants.  One of the things that Judy could not seem to “forgive and forget” was the fact that her sister had been raped by a priest in the orphanage and later suffered a mental breakdown because of it. She was sent away to a mental institution, and Judy never saw her again.  Likewise, Judy’s younger brother was also later killed in a farm brawl somewhere in Nebraska, which Judy never understood, as she always described him as a very timid, gentle soul. Both of these things, and others, affected Judy very deeply, and she was never able to really to get over them.  Judy became very attached to Alice and was devastated when Alice told her that she was getting married.

Judy “hated men with a passion” and begged Alice not to go through with the ceremony.  Alice persevered, however, and was apparently very happy with her choice.  She and her husband had a little girl, Margaret, to whom Judy became “Auntie Judy.”  Despite her marriage, Alice remained Judy’s lifelong friend and often tried to help her move past some of her bitterness.  Margaret reports that her “Aunt Judy” was a very kind and loving person to those in her immediate circle, but she could be very particular and stubborn and that she had a fiery temper.

Judy never married, but instead focused on her career as a private duty nurse and on traveling, which became a passion for her.  She traveled the whole world and spent some of her winters in Florida, where she enjoyed walking on the beach and talking to local fishermen. She never had any hobbies besides sewing and did not belong to any church, saying that she did not believe in organized religion.  Judy eventually retired at age 65 and has spent her retirement years going between Chicago and Florida.

Judy has been contentedly living alone until recently, when she was diagnosed with colon cancer.  She was hospitalized for a time after a colostomy and was unable to care for herself at home, particularly as there was no one around to help her.  Alice passed away in the late 1980’s, and Margaret had since moved out of state.  Margaret is listed as her “next of kin,” however, so when the hospital discharge staff called her, she flew back to Chicago to help Judy choose a nursing home.  She remains very devoted to Judy, and frequently comes back to visit her and telephones her weekly.  She is Judy’s only support system.

Meanwhile, Judy is not making a smooth transition, even at Margaret’s urging.  She refuses to participate in any activities or to meet any residents.  She is extremely depressed and some days even refuses to get out of bed.  She says she only wants to die.  “My life is over.  Look at me,” she frequently says to the staff.  It is hoped that she might yet embrace her new life at the home with staff intervention, as well as encouragement from Margaret.

(Originally written: September 1995)

 

If you liked this true story about the past, check out Michelle’s historical fiction/mystery series, set in the 1930s in Chicago:

Showing 8 comments
  • mary
    Reply

    Poor Judy reminded me of my bitter grandmother (personality only). She was a yeller, always upset, rarely gentle but it could happen. Most of their small country community pitied her because of the way my grandfather treated her. She was a rough diamond, like Judy. It’s sad to think parents turned their children over to orphanages because they couldn’t care for them on their own. That would be so hard. I look at the news today and think how many parents need to take that step but pride would not allow them to.

    • Michelle
      Reply

      Thanks for reading and commenting on Judy’s story, Mary. I used to work at a facility (which is where I got all of these stories!) which was a nursing home, but back in the day (before my time!), it was also an orphanage. From what I was able to gather, it was mainly filled with children whose parents were alive but couldn’t care for them. So tragic!

  • Elaine Krause
    Reply

    Sad but interesting.

    • Michelle
      Reply

      Thanks for taking the time to read and respond, Elaine!

  • Sheryl Lee Olsen
    Reply

    my dad’s half-nephew was (at least partially) reared in an orphanage around boston. he (lawrence olsen?) was the result of a huge scandal when his mother was thrown naked out of the house of the dentist with whom she was having an affair. caused my grandfather to sell his house and move to outer reaches of boston with his second family. but lawrence would occasionally come over for special events. I need to research this someday…

    • Michelle
      Reply

      Wow!! This is so fascinating, Sheryl!! Thank you for sharing it! I hope you are able to someday uncover more of the story.

  • Audrey Denecke
    Reply

    Quite a life story. Pregnancy mortality rates (and general health care) were horrible during the early 1900’s … really until modern times — now perhaps to be repeated. As my family genealogist there is a recurring theme in my research on the history of my female ancestors. Most women married, and sadly, due to no way to plan pregnancies’ and the poor care, the first wives would bear and birth the children, frequently died all too young; the second wife raises them. The 1918 flu brought other waves of death, then later the depression came. Orphanages grew in number. Orphanages, even the best ones, were hardly ideal for healthy growth and development. Certainly there was trauma all around. Judy had some little comfort with having her sister with her. And fortunately, the order of nuns running her orphanage helped guide and prepare her for a profession.

    Judy seemed to hold a certain strength. One can’t blame her for not wanting to embrace marriage.

    Although my story was completely different, I find parallels between Judy’s story and my own. But that’s another story.

    Ugh, then, a final blow colon cancer shows up. What a tough road. I hope Judy found some joy in her final years.

    • Michelle
      Reply

      Thanks for this thoughtful and interesting comment, Audrey. There is so much to learn about history through the lens of women’s’ perspectives. Judy was certainly an interesting woman. I think many saw her as cold and hard, but beneath the surface, her heart was definitely beating. I, too, hope she found some peace and some joy. Thanks for taking the time to read her story and comment!

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