Aldona Jurgela

Aldona Jurgela nee Girilius was born on November 12, 1931 in Kedaine, Lithuania and died February 1, 2026 in Norwood, MA.

Aldona and her parents left Lithuania during WWII. Her father died somewhere in Poland in 1944, after being conscripted into the army. After living in the British Zone in Germany for some years, Aldona and her mother and grandmother left Germany and settled in South Boston, MA.

During this time she met and fell in love with Vytautas V. Jurgela. They had one son, Vytautas P. Jurgela. Her life centered around her two men and followed them through many years of Lithuanian Scouts, the Boston Lithuanian folk dance group, the South Boston Lithuanian Citizen’s Association (The Lith Club) and many other Lithuanian organizations. Besides being by the side of her husband and son, she also worked full time at Honeywell where she was part of the group that worked on the Apollo missions. After her time at Honeywell, she went to work at the many iterations of Bank of America.

Once she retired, she went to work helping her son raise his family. When they moved to Norwood, she followed, becoming a familiar face in many activities at the Norwood Senior Center. She kept her Lithuanian ties and was very often seen at St Peter’s Lithuanian Church in South Boston and other Lithuanian events. Those ties were loosened when COVID -19 hit.

Her health began to decline around that time, and she slowed down but still kept as busy as possible, especially at the Senior Center. Through the Senior Center she heard about a program run by the Neponset Valley Humane Society where Senior Citizens are matched with Senior Cats. Through them she had two cats, Lydia and then Buba, who provided her with lots of love and companionship.

Her final year was spent in and out of hospitals and rehabs until finally Victoria Haven where she passed peacefully in her sleep.

She is survived by her son Vytautas P Jurgela (also known as Vytas or Vito) and his wife, Inta and their daughter, Audra.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Norwood Senior Center 275 Prospect St. Norwood, MA 02062 or the Neponset Valley Humane Society PO Box 544 Norwood, MA 02062.