Georgia Rose (Gike) Bobka

Georgia Rose Bobka, 96, of Norwalk, CT, beloved wife of the late John Bobka, died peacefully on March 25, 2024. She was born in Duryea, Pennsylvania in 1927, the daughter of the late George Gike and Anna (Starkey) Gike and grew up in Rosedale, New York. In 1949, Georgia married John, "the love of my life." The couple moved to Riverside, California, when John's New York Air National Guard unit was activated during the Korean War and returned to New York in 1952, settling in Elwood on Long Island where they raised their family. Georgia graduated with honors from Andrew Jackson High School in Queens, New York, and worked as a secretary for Bell Telephone Company in New York City and Huntington, New York. One of Georgia’s favorite pastimes was going to the Long Island beaches, especially Fire Island; she was an avid swimmer. She was a proud member of the Saint Anthony of Padua Rosary Altar Society in East Northport, New York. Georgia lived in Middletown, Connecticut for several years, then with her family in Norwalk, Connecticut, where she enjoyed visiting with neighbors and their pets while on her daily walks with her best friend, Laurie DeFlorio. She loved sitting on the deck at the yacht club and talking to the members of the sailing community. Broadway plays were a favorite and she also attended ElderHouse, where she enjoyed socializing and the piano and big band concerts.  Georgia leaves behind four children: Vivian Bobka of the San Francisco Bay area, Captain Christian Bobka and his wife, Deborah (Pearson) Bobka of Apple Valley, MN, and England, Ellen Bobka and Jim Travis of Norwalk, CT, and Susan McNamara, M.D. and her husband Glenn F. McNamara, of Middlefield, CT, and four grandchildren, who brought her much happiness: Troy E. McNamara, Britt A. McNamara, Erich Bobka, and Adam Bobka. Georgia was pre-deceased by her beloved sister, Arlene Audrey McGinn.

Her family will receive friends on Tuesday, April 2, from 5-7 PM at the Magner Funeral Home, 12 Mott Avenue, Norwalk.  A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10 AM on Wednesday, April 3, at St. Matthew Church, 216 Scribner Avenue, Norwalk. She will be laid to rest with her husband at the CT State Veteran’s Cemetery in Middletown at noon on Thursday.  In lieu of flowers, the family encourages donations to ElderHouse, 7 Lewis Street, Norwalk, CT 06851 (www.elderhouse.org)