Theresa Veronica Nikol

Theresa Veronica Nikol, 98, passed away on Friday, May 10, 2019, in Baltimore County, Maryland, where she was born and lived her entire life. She was preceded in death by her beloved husband, George A. Nikol; son, Dennis Haney; parents, John and Michaelena (Gudanowski) Drozd; brother, Michael Drozd; and sisters, Helen Bullock, Sophia Kramer and Josephine Vanik.

She is survived by daughter Geraldine (Haney) Watson and her husband Richard of Etters, Pennsylvania; son Greg Nikol, and his wife Karen of Bel Air, Maryland; son John Bergin and his wife Donna of Fallston, Maryland; son Richard Bergin of Pennsylvania; daughter Mary Ellen Kraft and her husband Leonard of Dagsboro, Delaware; daughter Karen Kessler and her husband Mark of Bel Air; son Tony Chong-Baeza and his wife Carmen of Bel Air; and long-lost foster son Mark Vance and his wife Cathy, who recently returned to her life. She was the loving grandmother of Gregory Nikol, Morgan Nikol, Richard Watson, Jr., and his wife Vinnie, Teresa (Watson) Bailoni and her husband Jim, Jennifer Watson, Dawn (Haney) Campbell and her husband Chris, and Dennis Haney, Jr., and his wife Karie; and a great-grandmother, great-great-grandmother, and loving matriarch of a multitude of nieces, nephews, cousins, and “honorary” children and grandchildren.

For 30 years, Theresa and George cared for more than 200 foster children at their home in Essex. They were Maryland’s Foster Parents of the Year in 1986, and were honored by Baltimore County numerous times. Her family remembers crabbing on the Wye River and spending summers at their house on Sue Creek. Theresa was a lifelong Orioles fan, and loved watching the O’s beat the Yankees. She lived in her house in Essex from the 1950s until shortly before her death, with loving support from family and friends, including Bob Mitcham and Hilda Adolpho, as well as the wonderful caregivers at Visiting Angels and Seasons Hospice, and live-in assistance and home-cooked meals from grandson Gregory Nikol.

Friends may call at family owned Bruzdzinski Funeral Home P. A. at 1407 Old Eastern Avenue, Essex  at route 702 (beltway exit 36) on Monday from 3 to 5 and 7 to 9 pm. Funeral services on Tuesday at 11 am.  Interment Holly Hill Memorial Gardens.

To honor her decades of support to foster children, donations can be made in her name to Catholic Charities foster care treatment program, catholiccharities-md.org, or Together We Rise, www.togetherwerise.org/donate.