Eve Przemyski

Eve Przemyski (nee Lada), age 96 of West Chester, passed away peacefully with her daughter, Yvonne McFadden and her son-in-law Jack at her side on June 26, 2019.

She was the wife of the late Richard Przemyski and was predeceased by her son Richard Jr.

Eve was born in Warsaw, Poland in 1923 to Tadeusz Lada and Maria Horoch Lada. She was just 16 years old when her idyllic life as a pampered only child ended.

Her father was executed by the Germans after being arrested for listening to a BBC broadcast on the radio, which was an illegal activity at that time.

In August 1944 when the Warsaw Uprising broke out during World War II, she joined the Armia Krajowa (Home Army.) Ducking German fire, she was a stretcher bearer, running the wounded to makeshift hospitals during the 63 days the Poles fought against a punishing German attack Later, she was sent to the World War II German Prisoner of War Camp / Sandbostel Uber Bremenvorde then Oberlangen for a year where she was forced to perform demeaning labor. 

She kept her human spirit by writing and illustrating a secret diary. Fifty years later, she translated it from Polish into English. It was published in 1995. In 2012, she received the Local Author Literacy Hero Award from the West Chester Public Library. The original diary is now in the permanent collection of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC.

After her liberation in 1945, she spent time in Italy where she worked as a Morse code telegraph operator for the British Army. She met her future husband, Richard, in Rome. They moved to Hereford, England where they married in 1946. They had two children. Richard Jr. and Yvonne. They immigrated to the U.S. in 1956 and lived on Lyndell Farm in Chester County.

Eve was a feisty force of nature. She had a great zest for life, beautiful twinkling eyes and a warm smile giving no hint of the hardships she lived through as a young girl. She was always upbeat and optimistic, refusing despair and darkness after what she had been through.

She was a master gardener and had a deep love for animals and nature. She was an avid reader and would educate herself on many topics including bonsai, vegetable gardening and how to raise birds.

Eve was an inspiration to many people and was loved by all who met her. She is cherished. She will be missed terribly.

Eve is survived by her daughter Yvonne McFadden and son-in-law Jack McFadden.

Family and Friends are invited to Eve's graveside service at 11:00am on Tuesday, July 2, 2019 at St. Joseph Cemetery, 1000 Glenside Ave. Downingtown, PA 19335.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in Eve's name to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105 and/or Brandywine Valley SPCA, 1212 Phoenixville Pike West Chester, PA 19380.

Arrangements by DellaVecchia, Reilly, Smith & Boyd Funeral Home, Inc. 610-696-1181, www.DellaFH.com