Shirley Jean (Duba) Zalesky, age 87, previously of Bellevue, passed away Nov. 4, 2022, at the Josie Harper Hospice House in Omaha. Born Nov. 21, 1934, in Friend, she was the second eldest of four children born to parents Albert and Esther (Engel) Duba.
Shirley was baptized March 8, 1946, at the Wilber Methodist Church by Rev. K.O. Zavadil. She attended Nebraska country school at Fairview School District #57 and Pleasant Prairie District #64, and graduated in 1952 from Friend High School. Upon graduation, Shirley was employed at the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service office and the law offices of Steinacher and Vosoba in Wilber. She later worked at Formfit Rogers in Crete.
Shirley met her husband, Jimmie Lou Zalesky, of Wilber, on Valentine’s Day, 1954, at a polka dance in the Milligan Auditorium. They were united in marriage on Sept. 28, 1954, at the United Methodist Church in Friend. The couple shared their love of polka music and dancing by attending many dances at the Sokol Hall in South Omaha and various other dance halls in southwest Nebraska. They enjoyed traveling together, visiting many states west of the Mississippi River, including Hawaii, Alaska and even traveled to Japan. In 1970, they moved from Wilber to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and then Bellevue, where they reared their children. Shirley spent the last six years living at the Good Samaritan Society in Millard, after breaking her leg in a fall at her Bellevue home.
She is survived by two children Jimmie D. (Addie) Zalesky of Lincoln, and Tammy J. Parsons of Papillion; grandchildren, Jimmie L.S. (Jessica) Zalesky of Ashland, Jeremiah J. Zalesky of Bloomington, Indiana, and Joslyn A. Parsons of Federal Way, Washington; great-grandchildren, Jacob and Janessa Zalesky; sister, Esther M. Tupa of Wilber; sisters-in-law, Darlene Mead of Friend, and Darlene D. Zalesky of Wilber; and many nieces, nephews and other relatives.
Shirley is preceded in death by her husband, Jimmie L.; parents, Albert and Esther Duba; in-laws, James T. and Georgia A. Zalesky; daughter-in-law, Glenda “Jeri” (Romero) Zalesky; grandchildren, Jesse R.S. Zalesky and Jillian Sade L. Zalesky; sister and brother-in-law, Darlene F. and William “Bill” F. Slezak; brother and sister-in-law, Delbert W. and Carol L. Duba; brothers-in-law, Jimmy R. Tupa, William “Bill” G. Zalesky and Robert “Bob” Mead; and niece, Katherine (Tupa) Bedient.
The funeral service was Nov. 11. Memorial contributions are suggested to the Eastern Nebraska Office on Aging Meals on Wheels, 4780 S. 131st St., Omaha NE 68137 or online at enoa.org, or to the Hospice House Omaha, 7415 Cedar St., Omaha NE 68124 or online at HospiceHouseOmaha.org. Write “Memorial for Shirley Zalesky” on memo line of checks. Condolences may be left for the family online at www.kunclfh.com.
