Sophia Yindra

Sophie Parkus Yindra, 87, of Bridgton, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, May 16, 2017, at the Casco Inn Residential Facility in Casco.

She was born on June 4, 1929, in Middletown, Conn., the youngest of five children, to the late Stanley and Stella Parkus.The family resided in Moodus, where Sophie attended local schools. It was in Moodus she met her husband Frank Yindra, and they were married on April 23, 1949. The couple had one son, young Frank, in 1955. The couple resided in the Moodus area for a short while, then moved on to Thompsonville, Conn., and Sudbury, Mass., before settling in Bridgton in 1971. The couple loved the Lake Region. Her husband passed in 1980.Through the years Sophie worked for Pratt and Whitney Aircraft in Conn., Atkins and Merrill in Mass., where she worked on the Lunar Lander Simulator. In Maine, the couple owned a store in Poland for a few years. She worked at a few restaurants before settling into the dietary dept. at Bridgton Hospital, where she stayed until retirement.

Sophie loved to travel, taking trips to Florida and Arizona in the U.S., Canada, Europe, and the Holy Land with the Catholic church. She was of strong faith, being active in the Catholic church wherever she lived, but she especially loved Saint Joseph Church in Bridgton. She volunteered much of her time, not only to the church but to the Town of Bridgton activities. She loved flowers, animals and birds, but especially her beloved Pleasant Mountain which she could see from her front window. She was quite a cook, and her signature Christmas perogies were always a hit. She loved quilting and knitting, being a longtime member of Chickadee Quilters. Family was everything to Sophie, but she found time for everyone, and touched the lives and hearts of many people.

Her last years were spent at the Casco Inn, where she referred to the staff as angels. She was blessed to have resided there for the last four and a half years. Her family gives many thanks to their staff and also Beacon Hospice for making Sophie comfortable in her last days.

She is survived by one brother Stanley and a sister-in-law Francis, both in Conn.; her son Frank and daughter-in-law Janet Yindra from Bridgton; granddaughter Elizabeth Ann Yindra, soon to be married to Zane Howe from Woodstock (she so wanted to see her get married); and many nieces and nephews around the country.

A Memorial Service will be held at St. Joseph Church in Bridgton, on Saturday, May 27, at 11 a.m. In lieu of flowers, a thoughtful prayer in her remembrance is what she would have liked.