PAKULA, OLEXANDRA, age 43 Olexandra "Lesia" Pakula, 43, of Dearborn, MI, died peacefully Thursday, May 7, 2015, in the presence of her loving family following a short battle with cancer. Her courage and bravery at this time astounded all, but surprised few. She was born November 3, 1971, in Lvivshchini, Ukraine, the daughter of Irene and Slavko Shetshiv. She also had a brother, Roman Shetshiv, whom she loved dearly. She is remembered as an extremely intelligent, ambitious, accomplished, and very stylish lady. Olexandra immigrated to the United States in 1996. Through hard work and determination she put herself through school and earned her Masters Degree in Linguistics from Wayne State University in 2004. In 2005, she married Symon Pakula, and together they had two beautiful children. Although she held several teaching and administrative jobs, motherhood was undoubtedly her greatest accomplishment. Olexandra was instrumental in helping to facilitate the immigration of family members and aiding them in becoming productive citizens of this great nation. In addition to being a loving wife and mother, Olexandra was a kind and loving daughter, niece, cousin, aunt and sister/daughter in-law who brought much joy to the lives of those who knew her. She was a true friend whose help you could always count on. Olexandra loved to travel, both domestically and internationally, and visited many places with her family. In her spare time, she enjoyed taking walks with her kids, helping out at their school, gardening, shopping, church and community activities, spending time outdoors, hosting family gatherings and just being with family and friends. Olexandra is survived by her husband Symon Pakula, their two children, Christian and Aleena, and her mother, Irene Shetshiv. She was preceded in death by her brother, Roman Shetshiv, and her father, Slavko Shetshiv. Funeral services will be held on Wednesday, May 13 at 10:00 a.m. at St. John The Baptist Ukrainian Catholic Church located at 3877 Clippert Ave., Detroit, MI. Visitation will be held on Tuesday, May 12 from 1:00-9:00p.m. at the Howe-Peterson Funeral Home in Dearborn.
