Orange resident Helen Koziel recently celebrated turning 103 with her family. Photo courtesy of Barbara Schmidt.
Orange resident Helen Koziel recently celebrated her 103rd birthday.
Koziel grew up in Old Lyme and has lived in Orange for almost 40 years. She is a communicant of St. Stanislaus Church and Precious Blood Parish.
Koziel is an avid reader and considers time as well-spent at the Case Memorial Library where “every book is a treasure” and every craft class a fun learning experience. She also enjoys exercise and swim-fit classes with her friends at both the Woodruff YMCA and at the High Plains Community Center. She volunteers at the Beth-El Center in Milford, helping to prepare meals at the soup kitchen. She says she sees helping others as both an obligation and a privilege.
Koziel is the mother of Joseph and Joan Koziel of Middletown and Barbara and Vincent Schmidt, with whom she resides. She has four grandchildren and five “greats. “She is proud of her entire family and gets her greatest enjoyment from spending time with them.
When asked to what she attributes her longevity, Koziel often responds that it is her faith, her family and her friends.