Obituary: Diane Bakowicz Michniewicz

To all: Diane Bakowicz Michniewicz's (Alpha) obituary is now online. Here is the portion that relates specifically to her and her family. Thank you to Diane's dear friend Michele Leonetti Buratowski (Alpha) of Doylestown for sharing it.

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Diane M. Michniewicz
Bucks County Courier Times

Diane M. Michniewicz, age 36, of Langhorne, died on Wednesday, January 12, 2005 at her home in Middletown Township.

Born in Bristol, Diane was a long time resident of Levittown before moving to Langhorne in 1994. She has been employed as an accountant at State Street Bank, formerly Merrill Lynch, in Princeton, N.J. for the past 14 years.

Diane was a member of Our Lady of Grace parish. She enjoyed fitness training including running and aerobics and especially enjoyed spending time with her children doing arts and crafts.

Diane is the beloved wife of 14 years to John Michniewicz and is the loving mother of Tyler and Alyssa Michniewicz. She is the daughter of Nancy (nee Graham) and Daniel Bakowicz of Levittown and is the sister of Dan Bakowicz of Levittown and Dennis Bakowicz of Arizona.

She is the niece of Alice and Ted Bakowicz and will also be sadly missed by many sisters and brothers in-law, nieces, nephews and dear friends.

Funeral Notice: Alpha Sister Diane Bakowicz Michniewicz

To all alumni and active sisters from the Phi Sigma Sigma EZ Chapter at Bloomsburg University:

Diane Bakowicz Michniewicz of Alpha class passed away Wednesday morning following a brave struggle with uterine cancer. Her close personal friend Michele Leonetti Buratowski, also an Alpha, confirmed this late last night.

Diane, who was 36, is survived by husband John, 9-year-old son Tyler and 6-year-old daughter Alyssa.

In lieu of flowers, the family has established an educational fund for the children. If you'd like more information, please click here to contact us for additional information.

Note: In the spirit of sisterhood and as a sign of respect, a modest floral arrangement will still be sent in Diane's memory to the funeral home on behalf of the entire chapter. (An alumnae organization fund will be created for this in future; at this time, it is being paid for by an anonymous sister.)

VIEWING IS SCHEDULED from 5-9 p.m. Friday, Jan. 14, at:

James J. Dougherty Funeral Home
2200 Trenton Road
Levittown, PA 19056
215-943-7240

MASS IS SCHEDULED at 9 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 15, at:

Our Lady of Grace Church
225 Bellevue Ave.
Penndel, PA 19047
(215) 757-7700

Interment follows immediately afterward; a procession will leave the church for the Our Lady of Grace Cemetery (which is not on site).

Please allow me to add my personal and heartfelt condolences to those of you who knew Diane and for whom this news is a grievous surprise. Even people who knew she'd been fighting cancer seemed shocked she left us so soon.

You're asked to keep her family in your thoughts and prayers.

Lisa Cellini
Alumnae Liaison, EZ Chapter

Who We Are, What We Stand For

SO YOU WANNA BE A PHI SIG? Or you're thinking about it, anyway.

Great! Choosing the right sorority is important. Here's information that can help you make the best decision:

Phi Sigma Sigma at Bloomsburg University was founded in 1988 by 35 students just like you who wanted a positive sorority experience that celebrated individuality within a sisterhood of lifelong friends. That's still true today -- and we're proud of this heritage.



The First Sisters: Founders and the first pledge class back in 1988.

We're equally proud of our sisters, who've graduated to become presidents of companies, professors, executives, loving mothers and leaders in their communities. We know, because we keep in touch with them. That's what lifelong sisterhood is all about.

Here are some of the things that make being a Phi Sig so great:

• We're a national organization -- well, international, actually! Phi Sigma Sigma chapters are located throughout the United States and Canada. Plenty are located in this region, too.
  Click HERE to see what we mean.


• We encourage sisters to ASPIRE, ACT & ACHIEVE. You're given plenty of opportunities to expand your potential, try new leadership skills and network with great people. For example, our chapter offers job-shadowing and job-mentoring programs that pair up interested collegians with alumnae sisters working in their future professions. Cool, huh? We think so, too.
  Click HERE to request more information.


• We're actively involved on campus and in the community. Being social is a given. Did you know that Phi Sigs also volunteer hundreds of hours to meaningful community service projects? Or raise funds to help kidney transplant patients and other people in need? Together, we know we can make a difference. And we do.
  Click HERE to learn more about our Foundation.


• We're academics-focused. We're proud our sisters consistently maintain one of the highest collective GPAs among Greeks on campus. Many are eligible to apply for any of the numerous Phi Sigma Sigma scholarships given annually by our national organization. Dozens are awarded, ranging from several hundred dollars to nearly $2,000.
  Click HERE to read more about some of our scholarships.


• We're not just sisters, we're friends. Sure, we choose to invest time and effort into a sorority. But what we're investing in is our future. Sharing college life with like-minded, diverse, interesting and fun women enriches the entire experience -- and prepares us for an even better future.
  Click HERE to read our sister profiles!

WANT MORE INFORMATION ON BECOMING A PHI SIG?

• Why Join? ~ Our National organization's perspective


• BU Office of Greek Life


• E-mail our Membership Recruitment Chair


• E-mail our Chapter Key Advisor

Road Trip! Local Phi Sig Chapters

BLOOMSBURG ISN'T THE ONLY PLACE YOU'LL FIND PHI SIG SISTERS! In fact, the tri-state area is home to many, many chapters - including some of the best in the nation!

We're everywhere! And we're happy to call these local chapters our sisters, too:

• Temple (Xi)


• Drexel (Beta Rho)


• U of Penn (Nu)


• West Chester (Zeta Gamma)


• Muhlenberg (Delta Lambda)


• Rider U. (Theta Eta)


• East Stroudsburg (Gamma Omega)


• Kutztown (Zeta Omicron)


• Lebanon Valley (Theta Tau)


• U of Delaware (Delta Eta)


• Widener (Gamma Xi)

And here are a few others that aren't so local, but still within
road-tripping distance:

• Clarion (Gamma Gamma)


• California University of Pennsylvania (Epsilon Tau)


• College of NJ (Zeta Pi)


• Rowan (Zeta Beta)


• Slippery Rock (Zeta Nu)


• Montclair State (Epsilon Theta)


• Shippensburg (Delta Chi)


• Gannon (Theta Gamma)


• York (Epsilon Rho)