Lois Horbal

Lois (Fanska) Horbal, of Wethersfield, departed this life on August 19, 2016 at home.  She was the beloved wife of the late Dr. John J. Horbal.

Born in Cromwell to Herman and Etta (Woike) Fanska on April 19, 1926, she attended local schools, graduating from Middletown High School in 1943.

After earning a B.S. degree from Teachers College of Connecticut (now CCSU), she taught English at Middletown High School for many years.  She later became a reading consultant at Newington High School, where she established one of the first high school reading programs in the state.

She earned an M. Ed Degree from the University of Hartford followed by a sixth year in graduate studies from Central Connecticut State College.

Lois was a member of the Newington Teachers Association, The Connecticut Education Association, the National Education Association, the Connecticut Association Reading Research, and the International Reading Association.

An avid member of St. John’s Lutheran Church, she was a former member of the Church Council, the Altar Guild, Lutheran Adult Fellowship, Women of the ELCA, and the ABC Quilters of St. Johns, which she helped organize.

Lois was an avid quilter who had several quilts pictured in national quilting magazines.  She was a charter member of the Newington Schoolhouse Quilters, the Greater Hartford Quilt Guild, and the New England Quilt Museum.

Lois is survived by her sister, Dorothy Krause of Manchester; her niece, Gail Byrnes Roddy and her husband Eugene Roddy of Wallingford; a nephew, Gary Byrnes and his wife Pat Gadomski of Edmonds,  WA; nieces Kathy Vallera and husband Joe, Carol Bond and her husband Robert, Cindy Yeager and her husband Douglas; and many great nieces and nephews.  She also leaves her caring companion of many years, Sibyl Henry.  She was predeceased by her sister Gertrude Byrnes and her brother, Raymond Fanska, both of Cromwell.

Funeral services will be held on Tuesday at 10 AM at St. John’s Lutheran Church, New Britain.  Burial will be in the Holy Trinity Orthodox Church Cemetery.  Calling hours are Monday from 5-7 PM at Erickson-Hansen Funeral Home, 411 So. Main St., New Britain.  Those who wish may make memorial donations to St. John’s Lutheran Church, 295 Arch St., New Britain, CT  06051.