Jolanta Maria Czernek

Jolanta Czernek died in her home in Fargo on July 22, 2019.

Jolanta Maria Wegrzyn was born May 6, 1941 in the village of Gora Jana in Nazi-occupied Poland. She grew up in Lodz, Poland, in the austere post-war times of Soviet occupation. Jolanta met the love of her life, Dr. Peter Czernek, when they were both medical students. They had a state wedding on Christmas Day 1964 and a church wedding in April 1965, and they always celebrated both anniversaries. Jolanta worked as a dermatologist before she and Peter decided to escape Communist Poland for the promise of a brighter future.

They lived for one year in Paris, a time Jolanta recalled as one of the best years of her life. In 1972, they immigrated to the United States as political refugees. For the next decade, they lived in New York, where they concurrently became parents, practicing physicians, and U.S. citizens.

In 1982, they felt called to raise their son and daughter in a quieter place and moved from New York to Fargo. Peter worked at the V.A. Medical Center and Jolanta retired from medicine to begin the next chapter of her life: devoting her heart and energy into raising her family. Chris and Monica grew up on a cul-de-sac in north Fargo surrounded by kind neighbors, friends who became family, and an abundance of love.

After her husband Peter died in 2001, Jolanta moved to south Fargo. She doted on her children, grandchildren, and friends, but a piece of her heart was forever missing. Theirs was a great love story and the promise of Peter and Jolanta’s reunion gives her loved ones comfort as we grieve this loss.

Jolanta was warm, generous, and sincerely interested in people. She was an extraordinary host, expressing her love through beautifully prepared food and Polish hospitality. She made friends everywhere she went, and her family has no doubt that someone reading this knew her as the kind woman with the Polish accent whom they met at a store, restaurant, bank, clinic, or any number of places.

Jolanta is survived by her son, Chris (Ana), her daughter Monica (Sam Wiant) and four grandchildren: Alyssa, Kaitlyn, Evie, and Felix. She is preceded in death by her parents, brother, and beloved husband Peter.