Frank C Swiatocha

Frank C. Swiatocha, 96 years old, of Milton, NH, returned to heaven on April 6, 2011 after a long and happy life. He was born in Bronx, New York, on April 1, 1915 to Wojcek and Alexandra Swiatocha. During World War II he served in the European Theatre attaining the rank of Technical Sergeant in the US Army Air Corps, where he was an airplane crew chief in charge of a B-26 Marauder. In addition to his many campaign medals, Frank was awarded the Bronze Star for valor, the Presidential Unit Citation and the Good Conduct Medal. He participated in several significant battles - the Battle at Ardennes (Battle of the Bulge) and the invasion of Normandy. For his actions, he was awarded the Croix de Guerre with Palm (French War Cross) and was presented with the French Legion of Honor Medal (Chevalier), France's highest military decoration, by the French government. He never spoke of his military service until near the end of his life, so it was his grandchildren who learned that he had earned the Bronze Star by rescuing men from a burning aircraft; he also, on occasion, flew those aircraft when members of the flight crew were disabled during battle. Upon returning from his military service, he married Eileen, his wife of 50 years, and they had six children. In 1977, he retired from American District Telegraph Company (ADT) and moved, with his wife and daughter Anne, to Milton, NH. He also worked for several years at Clarostat in Dover, NH. Frank was a humble man, and it was easy to pass over the fact that he spoke two languages fluently. Having worked all his adult life as a tool-and-die maker, he was a self-educated engineer who could manufacture anything that anyone needed with just scraps of wood and metal. During his retirement, he enjoyed fishing, gardening and his grandchildren. He is survived by two brothers, Felix and Edward, both residing in FL; his daughters, Anne Clark of Milton and Meg Lark of Rochester; his sons, Richard Swiatocha of Hampton, NH, Donald Swiatocha of Somers, NY, and Stephen Swiatocha of Tamarac, FL; eleven grandchildren, Jennifer, Christa, Richard, Christopher, Jeffrey, Daniel, Gregory, James, Alexandra, Savannah and Douglas; also three great-grandchildren, Heather, Benjamin and Evan. He was predeceased by his wife, Eileen; a son, John Andrew; his brother, Stanley; and his sisters, Bronislawa and Amelia. Funeral arrangements are in the hands of Edgerly Funeral Home of Rochester, NH. Calling hours will take place on Monday, April 11th, from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 pm. The funeral will be held on Tuesday, April 12th at Our Lady of the Holy Rosary R.C. Church in Rochester, NH at 10:30 am.