Sonya (Garcia) Petroski

September 24, 2019

Sonya Petroski, 36, of Richmond, Kentucky, passed away Saturday, July 20, 2019 following a sudden illness.

Born Sonya Annette Garcia on November 22, 1982, she was the youngest child of Frank and Irene (Pennell) Garcia.

Petroski spent most of her early life in the area of Jasper, Missouri, where she lived with her grandparents, Louis and Rachel Pennell, also living for a time in El Dorado, Kansas. She graduated from Jasper High School in May 2001.

Following her graduation from Jasper High School, she attended Fort Scott Community College in Ft. Scott, Kansas, on a volleyball scholarship, later transferring to Bridgeport University in Connecticut, where she also played volleyball and studied broadcast journalism. She interned at several New York City television stations as well as at KYTV in Springfield.

It was in Connecticut that she met Chris Petroski of Rahway, New Jersey, whom she married on June 20, 2009.

After obtaining her degree, Petroski began a successful career as a collegiate volleyball coach, returning to her alma mater FSCC for a time, as well as coaching stints at the University of the Southwest in Hobbs, New Mexico, and most recently at Berea College of Berea, Kentucky. She had also spent time as a reporter at various news outlets, including The Dudenville Gazette and The Hobbs News-Sun.

She grew up attending the First Baptist Church in Jasper, Missouri, and had remained in the Baptist faith throughout her life.

She was preceded in death by her maternal grandmother, Rachel Pennell; an aunt, Kathy Ritchie; and paternal grandmother, Frances Montoya.

Petroski is survived by her husband, Chris, of the home; her maternal grandfather, Louis Pennell, Jasper, Missouri.; her parents; Frank Garcia and Irene Garcia, Tulsa, Oklahoma; her older sister, Frances (Garcia) Wentworth, Tulsa, Oklahoma; her older brother, Adrian Garcia, Augusta, Georgia; two nieces and two nephews: Renae Collins, Violet Wentworth, Brody Collins, and Gerard Wentworth, all of Tulsa, Oklahoma; as well as many extended family members, friends, and other relatives.

No services are planned at this time, although memorials for Petroski may be organized at a later date.