Janice A. (Goldstein) Povich

BATH — Janice A. Povich, a nearly lifelong resident of Bath, a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and community volunteer, died just five days shy of her 90th birthday in Newton, Mass., where she had lived for the past four years as her health declined. She had dementia.

She was a resident of The Falls at Cordingly Dam assisted living community and enjoyed the company of the residents and staff. She especially appreciated the many music programs staged there, nurturing her interests in music, theater and art.

In Bath, Janice was a member of a founding family of the Beth Israel synagogue and she participated in all aspects of synagogue life. She was a member of many committees, including the panel that established the first Jewish cemetery in Bath, a part of Oak Grove Cemetery, where she will be buried next to her late husband, Donald M. Povich, who died in 2001. She also was a member of the “Chai” Committee, which means “life” in Hebrew and which oversees programs and community meals. She was a longtime member of the synagogue Sisterhood and participated in many activities supporting the congregation.

She was also a volunteer at the former Bath Memorial Hospital. After she and her husband retired, they travelled extensively, including trips to Europe, Israel, China, and various locations in the United States.

Janice was known for her interest in food and nutrition. Her meals were always healthful, well balanced and well proportioned. She was deliberate and meticulous about everything. A task as routine as peeling and quartering a carrot became an art project in her hands. Her home was spotless and fastidiously organized.

As her children grew older, she took on a larger role in the family business, Povich’s Men’s Shops, which closed in 1993, and drove nearly every day among the business’s three locations, Bath, Wiscasset and Damariscotta, braving Route 1 in the summer (tourist traffic) and winter (bad weather).

Janice Anita Goldstein was born May 17, 1929, in Bangor, Maine. She graduated from Bangor High School in 1947 with highest honors. She graduated from the University of Maine, Orono in 1951, with a bachelor’s degree in sociology, and a concentration in nutrition. It was at UMO where she met Don. They were married on Dec. 30, 1951, and shortly thereafter she began her life in Bath.

In addition to her husband, she was predeceased by her parents, Harry and Lillian Goldstein, and her brother, Marvin Goldstein.

She is survived by her children, Lon Povich and his wife, Ilissa Povich, of Wellesley, Mass., and Elaine Povich and her husband, Ronald Dziengiel, of Laurel, Md.; her grandchildren, Emily Povich, Steven Povich, Kenneth Dziengiel and his wife, Carolann Dziengiel, Mark Dziengiel and fiancée Katia Machiz; and a great-grandchild, Charlotte Alaina “Charlie” Dziengiel. She is also survived by her sisters-in-law, Doris Povich and Constance Lewis.

A funeral service will be held at Beth Israel Congregation, 862 Washington St, Bath, at 1 p.m., Wednesday, May 15, with burial to follow at Oak Grove Cemetery. Arrangements by Daigle Funeral Home, Bath. A reception following the burial will be held at the Minnie Brown Center, 906 Washington St., Bath. The family will hold the shiva memorial service at 327 Front St., Bath, from 7-9 p.m. on Wednesday.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that contributions in memory of Janice Povich be made to the Beth Israel Congregation.

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