Honoring Ivana Cvetkovska
Donation protected
*This gofundme page is a result of friends asking how they could best help our family or honor Ivana at this time. Our family has chosen not to do a local service as she and her husband knew a limited number of people here in the U.S. and would prefer the memorial be concluded in her home country of Macedonia. We believe Ivana, being the ever practical and efficient Balkan woman, would approve of this alternative to flowers or other expressions of sympathy.
Ivana Cvetkovska passed on Sunday, January 3, 2016 after a prolonged battle with cancer. This fund will help purchase a plane ticket for her husband, Trpko, to take her cremated remains back to Macedonia. It was very important for Ivana to be in the place she always called home - Macedonia. Your help with this fund will allow Trpko to take her remains home where she will forever rest.
Ivana was an exceptional woman - always carrying the vibrancy and energy of ten women. There was not a thing that she could not do. She was a phenomenal cook, a meticulous seamstress, gardener/herbalist, but most of all a loving and sacrificing mother and grandmother.
Ivana retired early from secretarial work and was looking forward to spending time with her family when in one day their entire family's life savings were wiped out. The economy of then socialist Macedonia collapsed and she and her husband were told whatever they had in the bank account they were to remove (5) zeros from that amount and that was what they had left.
It was Ivana with her never ending determination and ingenuity that she sought out a farmer on the outskirts of the city and bargained with him to purchase vegetables which she then brought back into the city and then sold at the local farmers market for a profit. That one act ended up saving their family and providing the majority of their household income for the next 10 years.
It was that same perseverance and determination which guided her children to the United States; and later prompted them to start their own business, The Balkan Bakery, at the local Abingdon Farmers Market.
A mass showed up on Ivana's x-rays almost three years ago. When her family in the U.S. tried to get them to come for an extended visit they were denied visas and told the only way they could come was thru a permanent resident application. By the time all the paperwork was processed for the application, Ivana and her husband Trpko arrived in the U.S. in March 2015.
We are very thankful for the nine months we had Ivana here with us. She loved helping out with the business at the farmers market and when her illness kept her from working she was still involved barking orders to keep us in line. She took the utmost advantage of the valuable time with her children and grandchildren - that will be cherished forever with so many wonderful memories, but most of all the love that we will feel for the rest of our lives.
Now, we ask for help in honoring this woman by helping take her home. The Department of Homeland Security would not allow her body to be transported back to Macedonia due to security issues. With this regulation, the only option left is cremation. Being that their combined Macedonian social security allotment was only $300 per month makes this task of taking her home to rest even more daunting.
Her sister, Tica, in Macedonia has already begun the process of honoring her with lighted candles in the Orthodox Christian tradition which are intended to help guide her onto her heavenly home. Her family there will conclude the vigil when her remains return to Macedonia.
Whether out of love or friendship to her children, grandchildren or to simply honor such a wonderful woman, the Cvetkovski family appreciates any amount you can donate to help her rest in Macedonia.
Ivana Cvetkovska passed on Sunday, January 3, 2016 after a prolonged battle with cancer. This fund will help purchase a plane ticket for her husband, Trpko, to take her cremated remains back to Macedonia. It was very important for Ivana to be in the place she always called home - Macedonia. Your help with this fund will allow Trpko to take her remains home where she will forever rest.
Ivana was an exceptional woman - always carrying the vibrancy and energy of ten women. There was not a thing that she could not do. She was a phenomenal cook, a meticulous seamstress, gardener/herbalist, but most of all a loving and sacrificing mother and grandmother.
Ivana retired early from secretarial work and was looking forward to spending time with her family when in one day their entire family's life savings were wiped out. The economy of then socialist Macedonia collapsed and she and her husband were told whatever they had in the bank account they were to remove (5) zeros from that amount and that was what they had left.
It was Ivana with her never ending determination and ingenuity that she sought out a farmer on the outskirts of the city and bargained with him to purchase vegetables which she then brought back into the city and then sold at the local farmers market for a profit. That one act ended up saving their family and providing the majority of their household income for the next 10 years.
It was that same perseverance and determination which guided her children to the United States; and later prompted them to start their own business, The Balkan Bakery, at the local Abingdon Farmers Market.
A mass showed up on Ivana's x-rays almost three years ago. When her family in the U.S. tried to get them to come for an extended visit they were denied visas and told the only way they could come was thru a permanent resident application. By the time all the paperwork was processed for the application, Ivana and her husband Trpko arrived in the U.S. in March 2015.
We are very thankful for the nine months we had Ivana here with us. She loved helping out with the business at the farmers market and when her illness kept her from working she was still involved barking orders to keep us in line. She took the utmost advantage of the valuable time with her children and grandchildren - that will be cherished forever with so many wonderful memories, but most of all the love that we will feel for the rest of our lives.
Now, we ask for help in honoring this woman by helping take her home. The Department of Homeland Security would not allow her body to be transported back to Macedonia due to security issues. With this regulation, the only option left is cremation. Being that their combined Macedonian social security allotment was only $300 per month makes this task of taking her home to rest even more daunting.
Her sister, Tica, in Macedonia has already begun the process of honoring her with lighted candles in the Orthodox Christian tradition which are intended to help guide her onto her heavenly home. Her family there will conclude the vigil when her remains return to Macedonia.
Whether out of love or friendship to her children, grandchildren or to simply honor such a wonderful woman, the Cvetkovski family appreciates any amount you can donate to help her rest in Macedonia.
Organizer and beneficiary
Angela Cvetkovski
Organizer
Abingdon, VA
Dejan Cvetkovski
Beneficiary