Obituary of Halina Danuta Kulczycki

Beloved mother and “Babcia” (grandmother), Halina Danuta Kulczycki of Falls Church, VA, passed on September 6, 2023. Born in Wilno, Poland on January 4, 1928, Halina grew up in Warsaw and received a diploma from the School of Nursing there. She came to the US in 1962 to attend Boston University School of Nursing, and later earned a BSN and MSN from Marymount College and George Mason University, respectively, as well as attained her US citizenship.

Halina began her long career as a nurse in 1950 at the Children’s Hospital School of Medicine, and then as Director of Nursing at the Institute of Maternal and Child Health and the Department of Public Health in Warsaw, Poland. She was an International Nursing Fellow at the World Health Organization in the early 1960s. In 1966, Halina began work at the Columbia Hospital for Women in Washington, DC as a staff nurse before joining Psychiatric Institute of Washington (PIW) as Nursing Administrator in 1969. She continued at PIW for two decades serving as Director of Nursing and Assistant Administrator for Clinical Services until her retirement in 1989. Halina also was a member of Sigma Theta Tau and the American Organization of Nurse Executives.

She is survived by her son, Christopher Kulczycki (Annette Najjar) of Annapolis, MD, and her daughter Dorothy Kulczycki Schilder (Thomas, Jr.) of McLean, VA, as well as her grandchildren, Alec Kulczycki, and Virginia and Tommy Schilder. “Babcia” as she was affectionately known, adored and doted on her grandkids and delighted in spending time with them. In her spare time, Halina also enjoyed cooking, playing Bridge and other card games with friends and family, and traveling the world with her former husband, Dr. Lucas Kulczycki, who predeceased her in 2018.