Helen Karnas Niemira

Helen (Karnas) Niemira passed away peacefully on February 8, 2025 at Bel-Aire Nursing Home in Newport, VT. She was 102 years old. Helen was a lifelong resident of Bloomfield, NJ before moving to Newport, VT to be closer to her daughter during the pandemic.

Helen was a graduate of Bloomfield High School. She also took courses in butchering at Essex County Boy’s Vocational School so she could work in the family store. Over the years she also worked as a confidential executive secretary and as a bookkeeper in the accounts department of a local bank. She was a devoted parishioner of St. Valentine’s Roman Catholic Church in Bloomfield, where she was a member of the Altar Rosary Society.

She was a master saver, collecting coins, postcards, and stamps, and always on the hunt for the best bargain. Maintaining family connections and Polish holiday traditions was of great importance to her, matched only by her relentless drive for the highest Scrabble score, which she continued to pursue long after her eyesight was failing.

She was predeceased by her parents Frank and Stefania Karnas, her brothers Walter (who died in infancy), Ben, Henry, Cazy, and Chet Karnas, and sister
Rose Potocki. Her loving husband of 68 years, Alfred Niemira, passed away in 2015.

She is survived by her sisters Lillian Tvedt of Toms River, NJ and Julie Hungerford of Little River, SC; Her children and their spouses Denise of Newport VT, John & Michele of Brick NJ, Paul & Nancy of Harvard MA, and David Niemira of Raleigh NC; 8 Grandchildren, 5 Great Grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews.

A memorial mass will be held 10:00 AM, March 1st, at St. Valentine’s RC Church in Bloomfield, NJ followed by interment at Glendale Cemetery in Bloomfield. Donations in her memory may be made to a church or charity of your choice. Online tributes and condolences are available at awrfh.com.