Eva Lazorack Balevich

Eva Balevich, 1936-2025

Eva Balevich, 89, passed away peacefully in the early morning hours of July 13, 2025, in her childhood home in South Canaan, PA. She was the beloved widow of Archpriest Svetislav Balevich and proud mother of two sons, Nick and Igor.

Eva was born April 3, 1936, in South Canaan, PA, the fifth child of Peter and Katherine (Jubinsky) Lazorack. The Lazorack family lived just down the dirt road from St. Tikhon's Monastery and regularly attended services together, fostering in Eva a lifelong dedication to her faith and to St. Tikhon's.

Eva graduated from Lake Ariel High School and Kutztown State College and later received a Master of Arts degree from Wesleyan University in Middletown, CT. Following her graduate studies, Eva served as Assistant Professor of Mathematics at Kutztown State College.

Eva met Svetislav while he was studying at St. Tikhon's Orthodox Theological Seminary in South Canaan. They were married in June of 1967 and soon after moved to Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, where Svetislav was assigned to the Holy Trinity Church. Together, they faithfully served the church community until his retirement in 2002. Moose Jaw was also where Svetislav and Eva raised their two sons, Nick and Igor, and where Eva worked as a schoolteacher, sharing her enthusiasm for teaching and mathematics. Although the family lived in Canada for over 30 years, Eva maintained strong ties with her family in Pennsylvania, bringing her sons to visit the family home every summer.

Shortly after Archpriest Balevich's passing in 2003, Eva returned to her family home in South Canaan where she spent the next 22 years surrounded by her family. There, she devoted herself to tending her garden and once again attending services at St. Tikhon's Monastery, just as she had in her youth. In later years, she cherished visits from her granddaughters, Natalie and Ella, showing them the garden, introducing them to her chickens, and preparing meals made with fresh food grown on the farm.

Eva will be remembered for her gift of conversation, her love of storytelling, and her joy in sharing favorite passages from the Bible. She had a way of making everyone feel welcome, filling the family home with warmth, laughter, and faith. Her deep commitment to her family and her unwavering devotion to God were at the heart of everything she did.

In addition to her sons, Nicholas Balevich (Brenda) of Lake Mary, FL, and Igor Balevich (Emily) of Darien, CT, Eva is survived by her beloved brother Metro Lazorack (Marilyn) of Harrisonburg, VA, and South Canaan, PA, and her beloved sister Sophia Burkhardt, who lived with Eva in the family home during the last few years of Eva's life. She is also survived by her granddaughters Natalie and Ella Balevich of Darien, CT, as well as numerous nieces, nephews, grandnieces, and grandnephews.

In addition to her husband, she was preceded in death by her parents, Peter and Katherine Lazorack; her brother, John Lazorack; her sister, Anne Chernushin; and her nephew, Peter Lazorack.

Funeral services will be held Friday, July 18, 2025, at 10:30 AM at St. Tikhon's Monastery Church. Interment will follow at St. Tikhon's Monastery Cemetery.

Friends may call Thursday from 6:30 to 8:30PM at St. Tikhon's Monastery Church.