Sophia Kovalichuk Heberling

Sophia Kovalichuk Heberling, 93, went to meet her Lord on August 12, 2010. Born June 2, 1917, to Clement and Helena Kovalichuk in Ramsey, Ohio, a coal mining town, she moved to Illinois, when she was six years old, growing up with three brothers and one sister, all deceased. What defined Sophia best was her Christianity. She taught Sunday school for many years in Moline, IL, as a member of the First Evangelical Free Church and also taught at the First Baptist Church in Ft. Collins, which she joined in1981. Sophia possessed a unique determination, zest for life, and the ability to take that ?road less traveled.? Returning to college at age 38, she earned her MTASCP, Medical Technology of American Society of Clinical Pathology. She held a certificate in Supervising Training and Management Development, did post graduate work in Immune Hematology and blood banking, supervising the Franciscan Medical Center Blood Bank in Moline for 20 years. A natural athlete, she became a certified swimming instructor for the American Red Cross, YWCA, and YMCA. Buying a motorboat, Sophia took her son and daughter water-skiing on the Mississippi River. She took up golfing upon retirement to join her husband, John, on the links. Sophia and John were married for 65 years. He preceded her in death in 2006. Her greatest love of sports turned out to be snow skiing, and she skied all the great slopes for decades to include, Vail, Steamboat, Crested Butte, Aspen, Big Mountain in Montana, and so many others. Sophia leaves behind her son, John David Heberling Jane of Moline, IL; daughter, Sandra Elizabeth Zwemke Doug Los Gatos, CA; four grandchildren, Angele Price, Los Gatos, CA; Jennifer O?Hearn, Tuscola, IL; Johnna Bambrey, Bailey, CO, and Josh Heberling, Bettendorf, IA; and three great-grandchildren, Katie, Kara, and Ellis Sophia. A funeral service will be held, Monday, Aug. 16, 2:00 P.M. at Bohlender Funeral Chapel. Interment will follow at Resthaven Memory Gardens Cemetery. Contributions may be made to the Wycliff Bible Translators, Larimer County Humane Society, or Pathways Hospice in care of Bohlender Funeral Chapel, 121 W. Olive, Ft. Collins, CO.