February 5th marks the first of two birthday celebrations that my/our Dad celebrated in the later days of his life. It is an interesting story.
Dad had always celebrated his birthday on February 5th … that is until he prepared to retire at the age of sixty-two and sent for a copy of his birth certificate from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. When it arrived, he discovered that his actual date of birth was listed as February 9th. Dad was an easy going laid back guy that saw this discrepancy as an opportunity. From his sixty-second birthday until his death in 2003 at the age of eighty-three, Dad celebrated two birthdays and often enjoyed two cakes or at least two remembrances of his birth. He did not mind the discrepancy, and in fact relished the fact that it made him four days younger than he thought that he was.
My sister Janie and I are keeping Dad close to our hearts as he celebrates his 99th birthday. Born in 1920 of Bessie and John Stachowiak (Stoviak), he was the second of three sons and the third of six siblings. He was an easy-going guy who was always very personable and outgoing, which suited him well in his role as a public servant. Dad's service in World War II brought him to the beaches of Normandy on D-Day where he was wounded and sent to England to recover. Upon recovery he stayed on and worked with others who were struggling with the wounds of war. He never spoke of those days until Janie and I got him to go see "Saving Private Ryan". Slowly he began to open up about his experiences and as so many others began to do, to take pride in what was accomplished by this "greatest generation". We had his medals redone and framed and he took great pride in this reminder of his service.
Dad's other area of public service came when he went to the Police Academy and joined the Uniontown Police Department. He spent over thirty years as patrolman and Sargent, motorcycle cop and Safety Patrol officer for the schools in the city. He was in charge of the Patrol Boys (now school crossing guards) and came to every city school monthly with a safety movie (as well as a few cartoons for our enjoyment - I remember Woody Wood Pecker in particular). There were an entire generation of kids from Uniontown that remembered Officer Stoviak and those movies. In fact, when Dad went for heart by-pass surgery in Pittsburgh, his surgeon was a Uniontown boy. Dad reminded him that he had made sure that the doc got to Craig school safely as a youngster, and asked him to make sure Dad got through surgery okay … which he did.
We found clippings of his service from the local paper - one describing his skidding out on a gravel roadway while providing a motorcycle escort for a woman about to deliver her child (he wasn't hurt) … and an account of him and another officer finding and disarming an explosive device in town, for which they received commendations. The list of accomplishment and recognitions goes on and on. I have a cousin who is a retired Pennsylvania State Police Officer who has said that Dad was an inspiration in his going into law enforcement. Another tribute to his service.
Janie and I remember him as a good man and a great Dad. He and Mom gave us their love and encouragement … and while we are very proud of them, we know that they were very proud of us and our accomplishments. Our love cannot be adequately expressed.
So, Dad, as you celebrate 99 years since you began your journey in this world, we rejoice in the gift you are to us and that you have been to so many throughout the years.
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