Gordon G. Spanek

Gordon G. Spanek, age 84, of Magnolia Delaware and formerly of Wayne, NJ, passed away peacefully on Saturday, February 17, 2024.

Born in New York City, Gordon was the son of George and Margaret (Wilson) Spanek. At a very young age, he and his family moved to Leonia, NJ where Gordon grew up and graduated from Leonia High School with the Class of 1957.

After high school, Gordon attended Fairleigh Dickinson University where he earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting. He went on to experience a rewarding career spanning over 40 years with the U.S. Department of Defense in the Defense Contract Audit Agency. 

A life-long body building enthusiast, Gordon met his wife Rita Collins through a weightlifting friend. They married in 1982 and lived the majority of their married life together at the home located at 31 Amherst Court in Wayne, NJ. They were blessed with the birth of their son Craig and enjoyed a love-filled marriage until Rita’s passing in 2005. 

Gordon’s leisure time pursuits mostly included weightlifting, cars, baseball cards, traveling, and intensively following the New York Yankees. A lifelong weightlifter, Gordon understood the importance of taking good care of himself and it truly paid off in his later years when he reached his eighties but felt like he was in his early sixties. A guy who always got excited about cool cars, some of his favorites were his 2014 black Corvette, a 1956 black Oldsmobile Starfire, and several classic Pontiac Firebirds. As a kid, Gordon loved to collect baseball cards. Of course, he outgrew the passion but it rekindled years later when it became a hobby he pursued and shared with is son Craig. 

In 2008, Gordon relocated to South Carolina. He bought a home at 105 Anhinga Court in the town of Summerville and remained there until moving to Magnolia Delaware in 2019. Along the way, he found true love and companionship again with a dear woman named Elizabeth “Liz” Toth.  Gordon and Liz felt truly blessed to have found each other. They especially loved to travel, enjoying vacations in St. Marteen and to Las Vegas where Gordon would spend hours at the craps table. 

Gordon was the loving husband of Rita (Collins) Spanek, blessed in marriage for 23 years until her passing in 2005. He was the loving father of Craig and his wife Jennifer Spanek of West Collingswood Heights, NJ, and loving stepfather of Keith McDermott of Red Bank, NJ; adoring grandfather of: Brendan, Colin, Michael, and Monae; and dear companion of Elizabeth “Liz” Toth of Magnolia, Delaware. He also is survived by numerous cousins. 

In lieu of flowers, because of a soft spot in his heart for stray animals, those planning an expression of sympathy in Gordon’s name are asked to consider a donation to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Gifts can be made online by clicking on the link below or by mailing a check to:

ASPCA Gift Processing Center

P.O. Box 96929

Washington, DC 20090-6929.

Please make your money order or check payable to the ASPCA and remember to indicate that your gift is in memory of Gordon Spanek.