Robert George Modrak, 82, of Derry, New Hampshire and formerly of Franklin, Massachusetts died peacefully in his sleep at home on June 29, 2013 after a period of declining health.
Born on June 18, 1931 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Bob was the son of the late George Modrak and Ida (Tami) Modrak. Bob was raised in Carteret New Jersey and graduated from Carteret High School, Class of 1949, where he excelled in Baseball and Football, and earned a scholarship to Drew University in Madison, New Jersey where he graduated in 1953 with a BA in Chemistry.
Bob served in the US Army Infantry from September 1953 to July 1955 during the Korean Conflict and was stationed in Austria. He was honorably discharged as Corporal.
His career began in August 1955 at Benjamin Moore and Company in Newark NJ where he worked in the Central Laboratories as a Research and Development Chemist and eventually as a Quality Control Chemist.
It was at Benjamin Moore where he met the love of his life, Ida (Edie) Giammarino, who worked there as a secretary. They corresponded by exchanging love poems, and eventually married on July 7, 1957.
In 1968, Bob was promoted to Plant Chemist in the Boston plant and moved his family from South Plainfield New Jersey to Franklin Massachusetts, where Bob and Edie raised their four children.
Bob worked at Benjamin Moore for 25 years, and then worked at California Products in Cambridge MA as Purchasing Manager, and at Gloucester Company in Franklin MA as Chemist. He also was self-employed as a Coatings Consultant until his full retirement.
Bob was also an Inventor, and was issued a Patent in November 2000 for Adhesive Caulking Material.
In July 2011 Bob and Edie moved to the Birch Heights Independent Retirement facility in Derry, NH.
Besides spending time with his family including nine grandchildren, Bob enjoyed Classical Music and made frequent trips to Boston to Symphony Hall and was a member of the Handel and Haydn Society. He also enjoyed watching sports, especially the Boston sports teams.
Bob was a member of the New England Society for Coatings Technology, where he served as President in 1981-1982 and was Chairman of several committees including the Boston Stone Committee. He also was a member of the Federation of Societies for Coatings Technology. He was a member of the Unitarian Universalist Church in Franklin, and served as the Chairman of the Board of Trustees in the 1970s.
He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Ida Rose (Giammarino) Modrak, and his four children: Barbara Ann Janko of Franklin, Robert Gerard Modrak and his wife Brenda of Derry, NH; Janet Romilda Thumith and her husband Edward of Littleton, MA; and Judith Ann LaFrance and her husband David of Franklin, MA.
He is also survived by his sister, Eleanor Darby and her husband Robert of Indiana.
He will be greatly missed by his much beloved grandchildren; Matthew Janko, Kristen Janko, Christopher Modrak, Anthony Modrak, Stephanie Modrak, Brittany Modrak, Gregory Thumith, Jennifer LaFrance, and Julianna LaFrance.
His funeral will be held on Saturday July 6 from the Ginley Funeral Home of Franklin (www.ginleyfuneralhomes.com) 131 Main Street Franklin at 9:15 followed by a funeral Mass in St. Mary’s Church at 10:00.
Burial will be in the parish cemetery.
Calling hours will be on Friday from 4-8.
The family would like to thank the Rockingham VNA and Hospice as well as the Home Instead Senior Care for their caring and compassion during Bob’s last weeks of his life.