Francis J. Szczesny

Francis J. Szczesny was a retired Senior Chief of the Detroit Fire Department and a veteran of aerial combat over Europe during World War II. He earned four Air Medals and the Distinguished Flying Cross which is the nation's second highest medal for valor. Frank died January 5, 2015. He was 90 years old. He enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corp. a month after he turned 18 in 1942. He wanted to be a pilot and actually learned to fly a Piper Cub. But the Army Air Corp. had other jobs it needed filled and he was assigned to gunnery school, probably because he was small enough to fit into the nose turret of a B-24 four-engine bomber. As a 19-year-old airman, he kept a detailed log of the 33 missions he flew during 1944 at the height of the war in Western Europe. The entry for June 6 shows that his crew and aircraft supported the D-Day landings in France, and two days later he noted he could see the invasion fleet itself spread out in the English Channel from his seat in the front of the B-24. On July 21, 1944, he participated in what had to have been a very daring daylight raid on the German capital of Berlin, which was protected by a belt of anti-aircraft guns 40 miles wide. It was the one mission he starred in his log, while noting the fire from the German anti-aircraft guns was very heavy and German fighter planes attacked his formation. But his log shows there was more to come. On Aug. 14, 1944, he noted the German guns hit his plane, knocking out one engine and the main landing gear. The damaged force the crew of his ship to abort their mission, jettison their bombs and head back to England where they had to set down on damaged landing gear. Two days later, his crew was back in the air. "Dessau Germany near Berlin," he wrote. "Flak very heavy," he wrote. "Saw two (American aircraft) go down over target. Saw one B17 go down on way back," he added. His own aircraft had been hit by anti-aircraft fire in June, 1944 and one of his shipmates was wounded, though years later when telling the story he insisted, "It was just a scratch. The shrapnel cut through his glove." During his tour of duty in England, he was impressed by the work of the firemen in the city of London, firemen who had to contend with the fires ignited by German rockets in the summer of 1944. So, a year later, when he separated from the Air Corp., he joined the Detroit Fire Department. He loved the fraternity and band-of-brothers spirit that prevailed at the firehouse as well as the challenge of fighting fires. His long career with the Detroit Fire Department spanned the years in the middle of the last century when Detroit was a boom town. He loved the city and possessed an encyclopedic knowledge of its streets and buildings. He would also often say it was one of the few places on earth where ordinary people could earn a fair wage with their hands, raise a family, and educate their children without bowing and scraping. His career with the Detroit Fire Department also spanned the tumult of the 1960s. He was on duty during the civil disturbances of 1967 and was a senior DFD chief in the early 1980s when he had to organize the city's defenses against the hundreds of fires that raged during the infamous Devils Night arson. As a chief, he helped save some notable landmarks, among them Tiger Stadium. Frank was very much an individual. But he understood that our individual actions have a profound impact on others around us just as his own safety had, more than once, depended on other people doing their jobs and doing them correctly. In his book, there really was no excuse for an improperly tied knot or a lost tool because others needed the knot to hold or to use the tool to build or repair or to fight a fire. In 1947, Frank married Dorothy Glosek, his childhood sweetheart from the old neighborhood on the West Side of Detroit. The marriage lasted 67 years and produced six children. He loved sailing, a sport he took up as he reached middle age, and quickly became an expert and skillful sailor who was asked by others to help crew on the big boats in the Port Huron to Mackinac sailing race. Frank would say "Sailing is a bit like solving a new puzzle every day because the wind and weather, which play on the surface of the water, are infinitely variable." And Frank loved puzzles. Indeed, he frequently managed his 24-foot sail boat all by himself well into his 70s. Like many firemen, he also became an excellent cook and was an adept handyman capable of fixing almost anything. Francis Szczesny is survived by his five children: Joseph, of Bloomfield Township, Kenneth of Charlotte, N.C., Sandra of Harwich, Mass. Patrick of Redford Township and Cynthia of Dearborn as well as nine grandchildren and three great grandchildren. A memorial mass is scheduled for January 17 at Sacred Heart Church in Grosse Isle, Mich. Hello Everyone. I am going to try and speak loudly, so that Grandpa can hear me. Our Grandpa was a wonderful man who wasn't afraid of anything. A SOLDIER, a FIREMAN, a SAILOR, a FISHERMAN, a PROUD FATHER & GRANDFATHER, a DELIGHTED GREAT-GRANDFATHER, a LOVING HUSBAND. A wonderful man with a knack for storytelling. STORYTELLER Growing up, I always looked forward to visits with Grandma and Grandpa because I knew they would be filled with wisdom, laughter, card games, puzzles, Polish food (though sometimes low sodium), green cans of Vernors, chocolate frozen yogurt in coffee mugs so your hands wouldn't get cold, and lots of stories. Grandpa's stories were filled with adventures that most never experience firsthand, so when he told them, we grandchildren listened closely. SOLDIER Grandpa told us of the excitement of heading off to war. He had signed up for the Air Force hoping to fly planes. Recalling Europe, missions, and free cigarettes at age 18 brought a smile to Grandpa's face. Once, I asked Grandpa to tell me about the war. We took the black & white photo of his 10-man team in front of their plane off the wall where it hung in the TV room and sat together at the kitchen table. He told me that no one had ever asked him to tell them about the war, so he was eager to share. One by one, he told me about each man he had served with. Where they were from and some unique personality traits they each had. Grandpa's tone shifted as he recalled the reality of losing many men that had fought alongside him, a reality that touched him but fortunately did not harden him. Shortly after that visit, I received a package in the mail with a copy of the black & white photo, which now hangs proudly next to my kitchen table. FIREMAN Grandpa also taught us about the daily life of a fireman. The card playing, the cooking, and the courage it took to walk into a burning building. We even learned that the family's summer vacation had been postponed one year due to the Detroit Riots. Grandpa was truly not afraid of anything. Grandpa's matter-of-fact stories about his fire-fighting days are what remind me to wet matches and what bring a smile to my face each time I see a fire truck go by. SAILOR / FISHERMAN On windy days out on the boat, Grandpa taught us how to read the wind speed and wind direction, and sometimes even how to "flip the bird" to a speedboat that had passed too close and left us rocking in their wake. "Frank!" Grandma would say. "That ***hole. What is he doing? There are children on our boat." "Live Bait" signs just off the island took on a new meaning as well. One time, after showing me how to hook bait a few times, Grandpa passed me the plastic tub of slippery, slimy Night Crawlers and walked me through a proper baiting technique. Back at the condo, Grandpa would show us how to broil the fish we had caught. Two (2) minutes on each side. DELIGHTED GREAT-GRANDFATHER In more recent years, after the birth of my daughter – Asiri – and Iris' daughter – Melissa – we were once again delighted to see another side of Grandpa. A man who found joy in watching Asiri and Melissa dance and play while we waited for a table at a pizza joint in Rhode Island. At my parent's house in Charlotte, Grandpa and Asiri played with a Brio Train Set for days. Moving the cars along the wooden tracks in circles until the magnets would separate; Grandpa would piece the cars back together and start anew. He even seemed to enjoy Asiri's nickname for him – Santa Claus. LOVING HUSBAND Our Grandpa's heroic service, perseverance, patience, and gentleness are inspiring, but his legacy (at least for me) will always be his love for our Grandma. Grandpa's love for Grandma was evident to anyone and everyone who saw them together. He was sweet on her and wasn't afraid to show it. Grandpa often told us the story of when he had first laid eyes on Grandma: "She was six, but she had the body of an eight year old," he would say. Grandma and Grandpa wrote letters to each other during the war and became serious after his return. While on the dancefloor at a friend's wedding, Grandpa had the good sense to tell Grandma: "We should get married." Marry they did, and for 67 years! "A damn long time." And if you ever heard our Grandpa snore, a snore that reached to the living room, you would know that Grandma – inches away from him in a double bed – loved him too. Grandma and Grandpa would have six (6) children, nine (9) grandchildren, and three (3) great-grandchildren with two more on the way! Grandpa lived a good life and had the good fortune to turn 90 last year. Sometimes he would ask Grandma: "How old am I?" "You're 90 Frank." "That's old. Do I go to work in the morning?" "No, you're retired." "Do I get a pension check?" "Yes honey, you get a pension check." "Ahhh… we beat the system." Grandpa never forgot his sense of humor, and he never forgot how to love. Before bed, Grandpa would tell Grandma, "I love you. You take such good care of me. Now give me a kiss, Dot, and tuck me in." Thank you Grandpa, for sharing your life with us, for your hugs, your prickly kisses, your incredible kindness, and for reminding us to never forget what matters most. Family, Laughter, and LOVE. I am so proud to be your granddaughter. Dziękuję (zhing – ku – yea) By Lauren Szczesny-Pumarada