Lois Mae Hazel Giniecki March 23, 1938 – July 24, 2025

Lois Mae (nee Hazel) Giniecki, 87, of Glenville NY, passed away peacefully in her home on July 24, 2025, among family, especially with her devoted husband William Giniecki by her side, after a brief battle with cancer.

Lois was born on March 23, 1938, in Portland, Oregon, the daughter of Wendell (Tiny) D. Hazel (of Opportunity, WA) and Agnes (nee Erickson) Hazel (of Spokane, WA).

Lois will be deeply missed by her husband, Bill, daughter Kathleen and her husband Randy Young, of Sandy Hook CT, granddaughters Natalie, Marlena (of Lansing, MI) and Lauren. Lois is also survived by her brother Richard and his wife Connie, of Portland, Oregon, his children, Michelle Winn of Hillsboro, OR, and Rick Hazel of Florence, OR and her brother Larry and his wife Donna Hazel, of Oregon City, OR.

Lois graduated from Tigard High School (Tigard, OR) in 1955. During her high school years, she was an avid horsewoman and participated in the Pacific International Livestock Exposition in the mid-1950s and earned several ribbons in Western Pleasure Riding and Confirmation with her Arabian horse, Monique. She then went on to Portland State College, earning a Bachelor of Art degree in Education.

Lois and Bill had their first date at the Fort Lewis Officers Beach Club on American Lake near the Tacoma, Washington in 1961 where Lois was teaching English and History at Mason Junior High School. Bill was an Army Captain, stationed at the Fort Lewis Army Base, near Tacoma. They dated for a year while in Washington. Lois then relocated to Portland, Oregon for a new teaching job and when  Bill was honorably discharged, he moved to Portland to become Assistant Distribution Manager for White Motor Company. Bill proposed to Lois on the Willamette River, on a river boat in Summer of 1962. Lois married Bill on June 22, 1963, in Portland, Oregon at St. Mary's Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. Lois and Bill were married for 62 years. They honeymooned in San Francisco, staying at the Mark Hopkins Hotel. While in Portland, Lois taught English and U.S. History at Wilson High School. In 1963, they moved to Fort Wayne, IN where Lois taught at North Side High School and Bill started a new job with International Harvester. While expecting their first, and only child, they moved to Emerson, NJ in 1965 where Bill worked as Asst Distribution Manager for White Motor Company and Lois was a librarian at Ridgewood Public Library. After their daughter, Kathleen Anne, was born in 1966, the family spent many enjoyable afternoons at Graydon Park, near the library where Lois worked. On hot days, they often went to Baskin Robbins where Lois enjoyed her favorite ice cream flavor, rum raisin. In 1971, Lois and Bill, with Kathleen in tow, decided to move to upstate NY, to a quiet suburb, Glenville, about 20 minutes from Bill's parents, Vincent and Angela Giniecki. Bill and Lois have lived in that same home, on Park Lane, ever since.

Upon moving to Glenville, Lois became a substitute teacher for the elementary schools of the Burnt Hills Ballston Lake School District. She was an involved parent at Kathleen's school, where Lois joined the PTA, running various fundraising events for the school, including book fairs, clothing drives, and the Cake Walk at the Annual School Spring Concert. Her mint chocolate chip, chocolate frosted bundt cake was always a favorite.

In 1976, she joined Bill in operating his parents' family business, the Country Garden, on Consaul Road in Schenectady. Together, they operated the greenhouse, nursery, and farm for more than 36 years, until they retired and permanently closed the business in 2012, after 100+ years of operation. Customers and friends often stopped by the Country Garden not always to buy flowers or produce, but to chat about their major life events as well as the latest town gossip. If the subject were serious, Lois would guide them to Greenhouse 9 for privacy; she was a confidant and friend to many.

Lois's aptitude to remember names, dates, and life circumstances was amazing  She had the ability to comfort and help others formulate decisions. The Country Gardens of Niskayuna Community now flourishes at the site of the former greenhouse, with Lois Lane ambling through it in honor of this remarkable woman.

In her "spare" time, Lois was the consummate reader and bridge player. She typically read 4-6 books per month and enjoyed an occasional crossword puzzle, though she often reflected how much better her mom was at crosswords. She also enjoyed her mom's ability to make amazing pies. "It was all in the pie crust," Lois would say. She and Kathleen would joke that the pie crust skills skipped both of their generations. Lois enjoyed time with her friends, whether chatting on the phone, shopping, playing card games or grabbing dinner with Bill, her friends, and their spouses. When the Country Garden was closed during off-seasons, Lois and Bill enjoyed trips to Oregon (a regular trip for Lois), Puerto Rico, Florida, and Texas (where her daughter and family lived for 16 years). Lois often shared that her favorite trip was visiting Martha's Vineyard, MA with Bill on their 30th wedding anniversary in 1993.

A few of Lois's favorite memories included training horses with her father, horseback riding and family trips to the Oregon Coast (Cannon Beach) and the Willamette Valley. She also cherished the time away from the family business to visit Kathleen (Lois always called her Kathy)  when each of her granddaughters were born. When the grandchildren were older, trips to the Fort Worth Stock Show were a favorite excursion, reminding Lois of her own livestock and horse upbringing. She was a dedicated Mom and Mima, attending dance and music recitals, soccer, and field hockey games, moving up and graduation ceremonies, and gymnastics and volleyball meets. Lois could answer more of the Jeopardy questions and solve puzzles on Wheel of Fortune sooner than anyone else in the family. She loved Broadway musicals, 1970s/1980s Romantic Comedies and music from artists including Tony Bennett, Judy Collins, Frank Sinatra, The Mamas and The Papas, Willie Nelson, and Anne Murray.

Lois was known for her passion and skill for both the written and spoken word. She was fiercely independent and a bit of a trailblazer for women in primary education in the early 1960s, advocating for equal access to benefits, pay and influence on critical issues at the schools at which she taught. She encouraged her daughter and granddaughters to become whomever they wanted to be as there should be no limits on what a woman could do.

Memorial services will be held on Friday, August 8th at 1:30p.m. at St. Lukes Roman Catholic Church, 1235 State Street Schenectady, NY, with Father Isopo officiating. A private interment will be in September at Gerald B.H. Solomon Saratoga National Cemetery.

Memorial donations in Lois' memory may be directed to The Community Hospice   (https://www.communityhospice.org) or The American Cancer Society (https://donate.cancer.org.) Condolence messages may be left at gleasonfuneralhomeinc.com