On Thursday, August 14, 2025, Norma Maxine Opolka went home to rest at the feet of her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Norma, who went by Maxine or Max to most, was born prematurely in Murray, Kentucky on Thursday, January 18, 1934, to Edward Odell Wood and Robye Ray Wood (nee Henson). The little four-pound baby was not expected to survive, but God had a plan for Maxine’s life. Although she was smaller in stature than just about everyone she knew, she had the courage of a giant, the kindness of a saint and the love that only comes from God. The family moved to East St. Louis, Illinois where Maxine attended East Side High School and later worked in the office of Swift Meat Packing Plant & Stock Yards.
Maxine married George Lee Opolka on June 19, 1959, and the couple settled in Troy, IL where they resided for over 65 years. She was a devoted mother and wife and a faithful member of Bluffview Baptist Church.
Maxine is survived by her husband George, 3 children, Debra Lynn, Karen Lee (Eric Hassenplug), Gary Alan (Sonja Fleck), 7 grandchildren and 2 great grandchildren. We will grieve and miss our mother and grandmother, but we are comforted by the knowledge that she has been released from the pain and suffering of this life and received into a glorious life of peace, love, joy and perfection.
Memorials may be made to Bluffview Baptist Church, 2052 North Bluff Road, Collinsville, IL 62234 or Hospice of Southern IL, 305 South Illinois Street, Belleville, IL 62220. Online expressions of sympathy may be made at www.Richesonfh.com.
Visitation for Maxine will be from 10 to 11 am on Saturday, August 23, 2025, at Richeson Funeral Home, 205 Edwardsville Road, Troy, IL 62294
Funeral services will be held at 11 am on Saturday, August 23, at Richeson Funeral Home, Troy, IL with Rev. Roger Wright officiating. Interment in Friedens Cemetery, Troy, IL.
