Shockey Roots

Geneva Martha ‘Ge Ge’ (Adams), 1st Shockey, 2nd Bolafka 1921–2023

Birth 9 JUL 1921 • Sentinel, Washita County, Oklahoma, USA

Death 31 MAY 2023 • Lake Orion, Oakland, Michigan, USA

She was the daughter of Joseph Leonidus ‘JL’ or ‘Lee’ Adams 1873–1943 and Caroline Susan ‘Suzie’ Anna (Poole), Adams 1889–1949

Marriage 1; Harry Earl Shockey 1912–2005, when Geneva was Age 20

Wedding Date; 1 Nov, 1941 • Indianapolis, Grant County, Indiana, USA

Harry Earl Shockey was the son of Anthony H Shockey 1861–1946 and Margaret Matilda “Tillie” Gwynn 1867–1922

When Geneva Martha ‘Ge Ge’ Adams was born on July 9, 1921, in Sentinel, Oklahoma, her father, Joseph, was 48 and her mother, Caroline, was 32. She married Harry Earl Shockey and they had one son together. She later married Raymond Michael Bolafka on November 26, 1983. She had four brothers and five sisters.

Geneva Martha Adams, Lived at 121 N. Main Street, in Fairmont, Indiana with her husband Earl Shockey and son Jere, when she got word of her brother Jay Lee Adams death in WWII. He was a Waist Gunner on a B17 G Flying Fortress Bomber, flying out of Podington Airfield, England, that was shot down over Olne, Belgium on 10 Jan, 1945.

Geneva became a Gold Star member of the Adams Family when Jay Lee perished. A Memorial to Jay exists where he died that day.

For Geneva, living in Fairmount, Grant, Indiana, USA in 1945 meant being part of a tight-knit community with a strong agricultural heritage. The towns population was around 2,000, and the impact of World War II was felt deeply, with the town coming together to support its servicemen. These unique aspects of life in Fairmount during this time created a sense of unity and resilience among its residents.

Prior to Jay’s death, Geneva’s brother Carl Richard ‘Red’ Adams, who was a Chief Quartermaster on board the USS St. Louise, when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor on 7 Dec, 1941. ‘The Day of Infamy’. The USS St Louis managed to avoid destruction, and made it from the harbor, out to open sea, without benefit of a tug boat, where it was then attacked by a Japanese Mini Submarine, but survived the torpedo attack again. A shallow shoal had detonated the torpedo before it hit the ship, which was a stroke of ‘Luck’.

After surviving the attack on Pearl Harbor, the USS St. Louis was nicknamed “Lucky Lou”

Geneva and Harry had only been married one month when that happened, but it took many months passing, of not knowing, before she and Harry got the word that Carl had survived the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

January 6, 1949 was a most special day of remembrance for Geneva, as her beloved mother Caroline Susan ‘Suzie’ Anna (Poole), Adams passed away at age 59. But January also brought great joy to Geneva and Harry, with the arrival of their son, where Jere Mark Shockey was born on January 26, 1949.

Her father Joseph Leonidus ‘JL’ passed away on September 17, 1943, in Carnegie, Caddo County, Oklahoma, USA at the age of 70. He had been a Cotton Gin manager in Oklahoma, serving all of the local ‘Cotton’ communities of Oklahoma for his entire life.

Marriage 2; Raymond Michael Bolafka (1931–2012), when Geneva was 62

Wedding Date; 26 Nov 1983 • Indianapolis, Marion, Indiana, USA

Raymond was the son of Romaldo Joseph ‘Raymond’ Bolafka 1901–1963 and Helen A (Rozenas), Bolafka 1911–1987

Geneva married Raymond Michael Bolafka in Indianapolis, Marion County, Indiana, USA on 26 November, 1983, when she was 62 years old. This was the 2nd marriage for Geneva, and the 2nd for Raymond after a 24 year marriage to Geraldine Beatrice (Parker), and also having served 19 years with the US Marine Corp, retiring with a rank of SSGT. Raymond had one child from his marriage to Geraldine; Donna Joy (Bolafka), 1st Delgado, 2nd Mackey 1958–2016.

At the age of 81, Geneva then lost the love of her life, when her husband Raymond Michael Bolafka passed away on March 3, 2012, in Noblesville, Grant County, Indiana, USA. They had been married for 28 years.

Residence February 19, 2022; Geneva Martha ‘Ge Ge’ (Adams), Shockey, Bolafka lived in Lake Orion, Michigan, in 2016, in an Assisted Living Environment. Her son Jere Mark Shockey visited and/or talked to her via phone daily. COVID 19 controls, severely limited ‘in person’ visits, which required a glass wall separating the resident from the home visitors.

Geneva celebrated her 100th birthday on 9 JULY, 1921 while living in this assisted living environment. As of her Centennial Birthday, she remained as the last surviving member of the Leonidus Adams and Suzie Poole family.

Geneva Martha ‘Ge Ge’ Adams, Shockey, Bolafka died on May 31, 2023, in Lake Orion, Michigan, when she was 101 years old. (101 years 10 months 22 days)

Grave Site Details : Cremated Remains / Family URN in possession of her Son, who informs “that after 6 months of Hospice, Geneva Martha Shockey has passed away, and was cremated. Jere has the Urn with her remains for the time being. At a later date, they will be scattered according to her wishes.

Ge Ge is survived by her Son, Gere Mark Shockey, Grand Sons Jeremy Shockey, and Jason ‘aka Jake’ Michael Shockey (and daughter in-law, Camille Ayonna Brazzle), GGrand Daughters Brooke and Skylar, and GGrand Son Luka, all who carry forward her legacy of love, resilience, and generosity.

Her memory will forever live on in the hearts of her extended family and those who knew her.

Rest in peace, dear Ge Ge. Your spirit dances among the stars, and your love remains etched in our souls.

In loving memory,

The Adams, Shockey, and Bolafka families