Fillmore — Deborah Jo Polaski of 10490 Bernard Street died Friday, March 1, 2019 in Jones Memorial Hospital, Wellsville. She was born on December 24, 1962 in St. Mary’s, PA, a daughter of the late Donald and Shirley Rimer Polaski. Deb graduated from Fillmore Central School, class of 1981, and received her Bachelor’s Degree from SUNY Oswego in 1985 in Education and a minor in Art.
She loved the Polaski family vacations in Myrtle Beach, SC which led to her taking a position as a High School Math Teacher in Andrews, SC in 1985. In the late 1980’s she started teaching Math at Socastee High School in Myrtle Beach, SC where she taught until 1997. Afterward she moved to Valrico, FL in 1997 and taught Math at Brandon High School in Brandon, FL.
Deb then moved to Lutz, FL in 1998 and started teaching at Wharton High School in Tampa, FL until 2013. In 2013, health complications made teaching very difficult for her. And shortly after her mother Shirley’s death on November 1, 2013, she moved to Fillmore living with Vern Ferguson across the street from her father.
She and Vern kept watch over and helped her dad until his death on February 16th, 2019. She was the first girl to play Little League Baseball in Fillmore and was involved in athletics throughout her elementary, junior high and high school years playing soccer and softball. Growing up she enjoyed the many Polaski family camping trips that took place over the years and continued to travel often as an adult.
She had a great appreciation for popular and rock music. She loved arts and crafts and her latest passion was using her Cricut Machine to create various gifts and clothing for her family and friends. She cared greatly for her students and kept in touch with many of them up to the present.
The comments from her former students on Facebook in response to the news of her passing, show how much of a positive and long-lasting impact she made on them. Surviving is her boyfriend and best friend, Vern Ferguson of Fillmore, two brothers, Dennis (Dolores) Polaski of Illinois, Daryl Polaski of Portland, OR, a sister-in-law, Cheryl Polaski of Webster and five nieces and nephews. In addition to her parents she was predeceased by a brother, Donald Edward Polaski Jr. in 2005 and a nephew, Dennis A. Polaski Jr. Family and friends may gather from 2:00 to 4:00 pm and 7:00 to 9:00 pm on Thursday, March 7, 2019 at the Kopler-Williams Funeral Home, 21 N. Genesee Street, Fillmore.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Friday, March 8, 2019 at 11:00 am in St. Patrick’s Church, Fillmore. Fr. Dennis JJ Mancuso will be celebrant.
Burial will be in Holy Cross Cemetery, Fillmore.
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