Justine Marie Wilbur passed away unexpectedly Tuesday, March 12, 2019, at her home in Sheffield with her three beautiful children Alex, Zoe and Marek.
Justine was born Feb. 8, 1978, in Landstuhl, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany, to Terri (Bills) Wilbur and Steven Wilbur. Justine was a precocious child, always interested in everything around her. She was a very strong-willed, strong-minded young girl who became a confident, strong, successful woman. She held herself to very high standards and excelled in all she attempted.
Justine graduated from Wahconah Regional High School in Dalton in 1996; she graduated from Boston College in 2000 with a Bachelor of Science in chemistry; and received her Master of Science in chemistry, summa cum laude, in 2004 from the University of Massachusetts, Lowell (while working full-time) and her Juris Doctor in intellectual property law from Suffolk University Law School in 2007.
Justine married Luke Karpinski in 2002 while the two were still working on their degrees. The couple began their respective careers in Virginia in 2007, Justine as a patent attorney and Luke as a patent examiner. Their amazing twins, Alex and Zoe, were born in 2011 in Fairfax County, Virginia.
Now with children, the couple decided they wanted to be closer to family and moved back to Massachusetts, living in the Boston area. Although Justine enjoyed her work, she really wanted to raise her children the way she was raised: in a small town with just the right mix of educational opportunities for her children, adventures for all and a tight family connection. After the birth of their beautiful son Marek in 2015, they decided to move back to Berkshire County. In 2017 Justine began working for the Albany law firm of Hoffman Warnick. It was there that she found her place as a well-respected, accomplished patent attorney and “a true friend to everyone in our firm.” The life they built was, in Justine’s eyes, the beginning of a wonderful adventure with family and friends. Justine was a beautiful, talented, passionate woman. She was a devoted mother to three fantastic children and truly had just begun to live the life of her dreams.
Justine is survived by her mother, Terri Wilbur, and stepdad Tony Vallone of Lanesborough; sister Kristin Wilbur of Manchester, New Hampshire, and wife Lexi Gallagher and son Ben; stepbrother Nick Vallone of Madison, Wisconsin; maternal aunt Pat Hathaway of Dalton; maternal uncle Chuck Bills of Petaluma, California, and wife Dianne; paternal aunt Jean Wilbur of Dalton; paternal uncle Rick Wilbur of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and wife Vickie; as well as several nieces, nephews, cousins and friends. Justine was predeceased by her father, Steve Wilbur; maternal grandparents Laura and Ed Bills; paternal grandparents Lois and Don Wilbur; and maternal uncle Bob Hathaway.
Memorial contributions may be made in her name to the Berkshire County Kids’ Place in care of DERY FUNERAL HOME, 54 Bradford St., Pittsfield, MA 01201.
