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Obituary

She lived for her family and dancing

By MARTY CLEAR
Published August 25, 2006

RIVERBEND - A few weeks ago, Lydia Woolkalis turned 94 years old and her health was failing. She could barely walk without assistance.

But one day, as her nurse was helping her walk across the room of her home near Lowry Park and the Hillsborough River, Mrs. Woolkalis suddenly broke into a brisk little dance step.

"She did like a little two-step thing," said her daughter, Lynn Weaver. "The nurse was like, 'Oh, my God, she's still dancing.' "

Mrs. Woolkalis died of natural causes Aug. 17. To the people who knew her best, it was no surprise she had music on her mind right until the end. "She loved to dance," Weaver said. "Her favorite song was Who Let the Dogs Out."

Mrs. Woolkalis lived a joyous and fulfilled life by being a homemaker, wife and mother.

"She was a mom, and that's all she wanted to be," her daughter said. "A mom and a grandmother. She never really had time to make a circle of friends because she was always taking care of someone."

Mrs. Woolkalis was born in West Wyoming, Pa. She was the daughter of a coal miner and never finished high school. At a dance, she met her husband, Mike, whose family owned a farm. They married when they were both in their early 20s. They spent the first half of their married life in New Jersey, where he worked for a company that manufactured printing presses.

They retired to Tampa in 1964, first settling in Forest Hills. One of her sisters was already living here, and other siblings soon followed.

"She was the caregiver for the family," her sister said. "She was from a large family, seven children, and she took care of them all as they were dying. She was the last one living."

She never learned to drive, so after she and her husband came to Tampa, they were together virtually every minute, until he died of cancer in 1984.

Not long after, Mrs. Woolkalis moved next door to Weaver, her only child, for 13 years. She moved into her daughter's home for the last year of her life.

She liked to crochet, work in the garden and spend time with her family. She loved to entertain her daughter and grandchildren with silly songs from her youth. The entire family would dance and sing together.

"She loved songs like I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles and Bushel and a Peck," Weaver said. "And she loved that song Jimmy Durante sang, Inka Dinka Doo. She made up her own words to that one, but I'm not going to tell you what they were."

Besides her daughter, Mrs. Woolkalis is survived by a granddaughter, a grandson and four great-grandchildren.

[Last modified August 23, 2006, 12:37:03]