SHREWSBURY – Thomas A. Mikolajczak, 97, formerly of Dudley, died Monday, July 22, 2019 at Shrewsbury Nursing & Rehabilitation Center after a period of declining health. His wife of 74 years, Florence R. (Mroczek) Mikolajczak, died in 2016 and his daughter, Linda Pellegrini, died in 1996.
He leaves 2 grandchildren, Kenneth J. Diaz and his wife Joan of Shrewsbury, and Susan Zawacki and her husband Mitchell of Bristol, CT; great-grandchildren, Arielle Bocanegra, Max Diaz and Isaac Diaz; and several nephews and nieces. He was preceded in death by 4 brothers, Adolph, John, Nicholas and Joseph Mikolajczak, and by 3 sisters, Bernice Drescher, Loretta Kwasniewski and Mary Levitre.
He was born and raised in Dudley, a son of Stanislaus and Bridget (Rybacki) Mikolajczak and lived there all his life before moving to Shrewsbury a few years ago.
He was a World War II United States Marine Corps veteran, serving as a corporal in the Asiatic-Pacific Theatre; He saw combat in Saipan and Iwo Jima.
Mr. Mikolajczak was a jet test operator at Pratt-Whitney Aircraft Company in East Hartford for 35 years before retiring in 1987.
He was a member of Saint Andrew Bobola Church in Dudley and the Auburn-Webster Lodge of Elks #2118. His favorite activities were riding his motorcycle and boating on Webster Lake, and more recently playing pool with his great-grandsons.
The funeral will be held Monday, July 29, from the Sitkowski & Malboeuf Funeral Home, 340 School Street, Webster, with a Mass at 10:30 AM in Saint Andrew Bobola Church, 54 West Main Street, Dudley. Burial will be in Saint Joseph Garden of Peace, Webster with full military honors. Visitation will be held from 9:00 to 10:00 AM Monday in the funeral home, prior to the Mass. Donations in his name may be made to the Webster-Dudley Veterans Council, 3 Veterans Way, Webster, MA 01570.