Roberta Chelak
OBITUARY
Roberta Chelak, 81, of Scranton, PA, passed away on May 20, 2026, at Grace House of Windam, in Massachusetts, having bravely battled dementia for the last few years of her life.
She was predeceased by her husband of 58 years, Thomas J. Chelak, her brother, John (Joann) Evangelista, and her parents, John and Domenica Mae Evangelista.
She is survived by her three children, Thomas J. Chelak, Jr. (Florence), Todd Chelak (Heather), and Lee Ann Marchionna (Joseph); and her adoring grandchildren, Steven and Taylor Chelak, Nicholas, Gabeiella, and Sophia Chelak, and Madison, Maxwell, and Benjamin Marchionna.
She was a graduate of West Scranton High School, Class of 1962, a retiree from IBM Endicott after serving 20 plus years during their heydays as a manufacturing supervisor, and then a dedicated college security guard in her golden years. Throughout her working years, she always made time for adventure and proudly embraced the RV lifestyle. She was a wonderful mother, often described as a spitfire, a women of Sicilian spirit, who could hold her own with anyone and make you laugh in the same breath. From a young age, Roberta worked alongside her mother to help support the family, and that fierce work ethic never left her. She carried it through decades of life, not hanging up her hat until she was nearly 80 years young. She took tremendous pride in the home she built in Binghamton, NY (Chenango Forks) to raise a family, tending to it with the same care and determination she brought to everything she did. When she later moved to Massachusetts to be closer to her children, she welcomed a new and cherished role, nanny to her newborn grandson, Benjamin, spending her days teaching him his numbers and letters with the same devotion she had always given her family. Above all, she was a rock for her children, her grandchildren, and anyone who took the time to know her well.
Roberta will have a private burial as part of an intimate family gathering. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the Alzheimer’s Association at alz.org in Roberta’s memory. Local arrangements by the John J. Turko & Sons Funeral Home, Dickson City.
Roberta Chelak
May 20, 2026