Office Hours: Monday – Friday, 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Calls outside of office hours? No worries! Our team will respond within 10–15 minutes.
August 10, 2014
Services
Friends may visit with the family at the Vander May Wayne Colonial Funeral Home, 567 Ratzer Road, Wayne, on Saturday, August 23, 2014 from 10 AM-12 Noon. A funeral service will be held at 12 noon, at the funeral home, immediately following the visiting hours.
John R. Kowal, age 85 of Wayne died peacefully at home with his family gathered at his side.
John was born in Poland and lived there as a young boy. His father was a U.S. citizen however, and during the 1930’s with tensions rising in Europe, he left Poland settling his family in Wallington, NJ. John’s future would have been much different had his father not brought them all here to the U.S.A.
John went on to attend Lodi High School and then served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War. He served as an Army MP and also as a guard for the diplomats of the newly formed United Nations visiting the war zone in Korea. He was honorably discharged in 1955, decorated with the Korean Service Medal and the United Nations Service Medal, to name a few.
Upon his return, John began working at Universal Oil Products, “U.O.P.” as everyone knew it. His career there spanned twenty eight years before he moved on to work at the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission in Newark, where he worked for another twenty two years. He retired from the PVSC in 1996
John was a very calm and easy going person. Nothing seemed to faze him; he was like a rock. On one occasion at U.O.P, there was a pretty severe explosion in the plant that sent the employees frantically running for safety. John, with his sandwich in hand, calmly walked towards the chaos and began calming people down. He didn’t seem to skip a beat. His children recall him being the one to tend to their wounds when they were young; he wasn’t squeamish at all. In their laundry room, which was also known as the “operating room,” John would clean their scrapes, remove splinters, and bandage their cuts. His disposition was so calming that the children always felt at ease when he was there to help. He was a great dad.
There were two things that did get John excited: the NY GIANTS and the METS! He was a huge fan of both and no matter what was going on, he would watch the games. He had also been a pigeon racer and was a long time member of the Wayne Pigeon Club. A charter member of Our Lady of Consolation RC Church in Wayne, John and Madeline were involved since the days before the church was even constructed, attending Mass in the gym at Schuyler Colfax school. He had remained active at the church throughout the years.
John met his wife, Madeline Bortolot, at an alumni football game in Passaic. A mutual friend had introduced them that night and they hit it off. They married on June 22, 1957 and enjoyed a honeymoon in Florida. They had driven down there and visited several different places along the way. Their trip included driving on the beach in Daytona and they spent some time in Miami. They continued to travel over the years, visiting Europe several times and touring around the United States as well. They were very understanding of each other, and often knew exactly what the other was thinking before any words were spoken. They were blessed with a “best friends” marriage for fifty seven years. John was a wonderful husband and Madeline will miss him dearly.
John is survived by his beloved wife Madeline of Wayne, his two children; Karen Rowan and her husband Stephen of Wayne, and Michael Kowal and his wife Monica of Wayne, and one granddaughter; Kristina Kowal of Wayne.
If friends so wish, memorial donations in John's honor to the Passaic Valley Hospice, 783 Riverview Dr., Totowa, NJ 07512 would be greatly appreciated.
If you would like to send a private condolence directly to the family use this condolence section.
Friends may visit with the family at the Vander May Wayne Colonial Funeral Home, 567 Ratzer Road, Wayne, on Saturday, August 23, 2014 from 10 AM-12 Noon. A funeral service will be held at 12 noon, at the funeral home, immediately following the visiting hours.
August 10, 2014
Services
Friends may visit with the family at the Vander May Wayne Colonial Funeral Home, 567 Ratzer Road, Wayne, on Saturday, August 23, 2014 from 10 AM-12 Noon. A funeral service will be held at 12 noon, at the funeral home, immediately following the visiting hours.
John R. Kowal, age 85 of Wayne died peacefully at home with his family gathered at his side.
John was born in Poland and lived there as a young boy. His father was a U.S. citizen however, and during the 1930’s with tensions rising in Europe, he left Poland settling his family in Wallington, NJ. John’s future would have been much different had his father not brought them all here to the U.S.A.
John went on to attend Lodi High School and then served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War. He served as an Army MP and also as a guard for the diplomats of the newly formed United Nations visiting the war zone in Korea. He was honorably discharged in 1955, decorated with the Korean Service Medal and the United Nations Service Medal, to name a few.
Upon his return, John began working at Universal Oil Products, “U.O.P.” as everyone knew it. His career there spanned twenty eight years before he moved on to work at the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission in Newark, where he worked for another twenty two years. He retired from the PVSC in 1996
John was a very calm and easy going person. Nothing seemed to faze him; he was like a rock. On one occasion at U.O.P, there was a pretty severe explosion in the plant that sent the employees frantically running for safety. John, with his sandwich in hand, calmly walked towards the chaos and began calming people down. He didn’t seem to skip a beat. His children recall him being the one to tend to their wounds when they were young; he wasn’t squeamish at all. In their laundry room, which was also known as the “operating room,” John would clean their scrapes, remove splinters, and bandage their cuts. His disposition was so calming that the children always felt at ease when he was there to help. He was a great dad.
There were two things that did get John excited: the NY GIANTS and the METS! He was a huge fan of both and no matter what was going on, he would watch the games. He had also been a pigeon racer and was a long time member of the Wayne Pigeon Club. A charter member of Our Lady of Consolation RC Church in Wayne, John and Madeline were involved since the days before the church was even constructed, attending Mass in the gym at Schuyler Colfax school. He had remained active at the church throughout the years.
John met his wife, Madeline Bortolot, at an alumni football game in Passaic. A mutual friend had introduced them that night and they hit it off. They married on June 22, 1957 and enjoyed a honeymoon in Florida. They had driven down there and visited several different places along the way. Their trip included driving on the beach in Daytona and they spent some time in Miami. They continued to travel over the years, visiting Europe several times and touring around the United States as well. They were very understanding of each other, and often knew exactly what the other was thinking before any words were spoken. They were blessed with a “best friends” marriage for fifty seven years. John was a wonderful husband and Madeline will miss him dearly.
John is survived by his beloved wife Madeline of Wayne, his two children; Karen Rowan and her husband Stephen of Wayne, and Michael Kowal and his wife Monica of Wayne, and one granddaughter; Kristina Kowal of Wayne.
If friends so wish, memorial donations in John's honor to the Passaic Valley Hospice, 783 Riverview Dr., Totowa, NJ 07512 would be greatly appreciated.
Guestbook