Obituary of Maria Gregoret

Maya Gregoret was born in 1930 in Kharkiv, Ukraine, the only child of Olga and Paul Petrenko. She had an eventful early life: her father, Paul, was arrested and imprisoned five years during Stalin's purges of the 1930s. Shortly after Paul's sentence ended, World War II broke out and Germany invaded Ukraine. The family was conscripted by the Germans as laborers and brought first to Poland and then to Berlin (again experiencing bombing, this time by the Allies). After Germany's defeat, Maya and her parents found themselves as stateless refugees, unwilling and afraid to return to the USSR. They were assigned to a Displaced Persons camp in Hannover, Germany. Maya graduated from the Ukrainian high school established at the camp, and then from a German interpreters school where she majored in German and English. The Petrenkos arrived in the USA in 1950, and thanks to a local sponsor, settled in St. Paul, MN. Maya's knowledge of English gave her a head start in finding skilled work. Although she hoped to study medicine, she also wanted to support her parents, who were highly educated but still English language learners then. Maya worked at the Wood Conversion Company (Conwed) as a secretary where she enjoyed both her job and the camaraderie of her coworkers. Maya met her husband, Oleh Gregoret, also a Ukrainian immigrant, soon after arriving in the US, but marriage had to wait until Oleh finished serving in Korea and then graduated from college. They married in 1961. In the early years of their marriage, Maya and Oleh enjoyed exploring America by car, working together on their home, and spending time with their friends and family. Maya loved being a mother and always seemed to have many neighborhood children in her midst. The Gregorets took up sailing on the St. Croix and on Lake Pepin. Maya was a capable first mate and was even hoisted to the top of the mast on occasion for repairs. She returned to the workforce when her children were teens, spending 14 years at Minnesota Mutual (Securian). In retirement, Maya took on the editorship of The St. Katherine Ukrainian Orthodox Church's bimonthly magazine. For more than a decade, she applied her formidable formatting and translation skills, and Oleh's photographs, to produce a bilingual publication eagerly anticipated by parishioners. She also led tours of the church for seminary students and others. Maya delighted in being with her grandchildren who adored her. Maya is survived by her son Alexander, daughter Lydia, son-in-law Chuck, and grandchildren Colin (McKenzie) and Jem. She was preceded in death by her parents and her husband, Oleh. FUNERAL SERVICE: Saturday, August 10 at 10 am at St. Katherine Ukrainian Orthodox Church, 1600 West Highway 96, Arden Hills, MN 55112, interment at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, with lunch to follow at a location to be specified. In lieu of flowers, please make donations in Maya's memory to St Katherine church or to the Protez Foundation