Jay Kaczmarowski, Jr.

Jay Harry Kaczmarowski, Jr.

Jay Kaczmarowski, age 74, of Mechanicsburg, passed away on Saturday, January 22, 2022.  Jay is survived by his wife, Ann Kaczmarowski, and his children, Jerry, Rebecca, and Jenny, as well as many grandchildren:  Brendan, Ruben, Alex, Zak, Caden, Annabelle, and Fabian.

He grew up in a military family and lived in many places both in the United States and Europe.  He loved to travel with his mom, particularly when they lived in Europe.  He had many stories of post war Germany as well as stories of dressing up in real Scottish plate armor to conduct mock battles with his friends.

He married Ann in 1968 and took a break from college to volunteer to serve in Vietnam.  Jay served as a helicopter pilot in the 498th Medevac in Dustoff 4-1.  He rescued many wounded soldiers and civilians during his year in country.  After returning from the war, he completed his Bachelor’s and Master’s of Geological Engineering at the University of Wisconsin in Madison.

As geologist extraordinaire, his career spanned copper mining, oil and gas, and stone quarry mining.  His first job was with Anaconda Copper in Victoria, Nevada, an unincorporated mining camp.  He continued his career in Tonopah, Nevada and Butte, Montana where he ultimately served as Chief Geologist of the Berkeley Pit.

From there, he moved into oil and gas geology, in Houston and Dallas.  The oil and gas industry wasn’t his favorite as he valued cowboy boots over Italian loafers and jeans over business suits.

After a few years in oil and gas he moved to Mechanicsburg where he worked as a mining consultant with a specialty in planning underground and surface mines.  He served as Vice President and office manager of Continental Placer for three decades.  He was active in the American Institute of Professional Geologists (AIPG) and Pennsylvania Aggregate and Concrete Association (PACA).

He attended St. Joseph Catholic Church and was a member of the Knights of Columbus.  Jay had many interests, including fishing, train modeling, and golfing.  He also had an extensive peppadew ranch.

Despite his many hobbies, family was always his first priority.  He would drop everything to help when needed or just pop in for a “quick chat.”  These brief visits would turn into long conversations, allowing his grandchildren and children to spend time with the father and grandfather they loved.

Jay loved to watch his children and grandchildren play sports, while providing valued input from the sidelines which generally didn’t get him kicked out of the stands.  He also looked forward to a yearly trip back to Montana to fish for trout in the Madison and Yellowstone with his son.  He loved taking his grandchildren to train museums, tank museums, and hunting fossils with them.  As an avid lover of history, he also enjoyed taking river boat cruises in Europe and touring medieval castles in Scotland with Ann.

He was a strong supporter of the 2nd Amendment and the American Constitution in general.  His first Covid face mask was fashioned from a purple Crown Royal velvet bag made by his loving wife Ann.  It had a hole in the middle to allow him to smoke.  When asked how he was doing, he always answered, “Almost Perfect.”

As a Catholic, he was a regular church attender and regular reader of Biblical Archaeology.  His Mom was taken from him early in life, and, as he aged, he looked forward to the day when he would see her again in Heaven.  That day has come, and those of us who remain now look forward to seeing him again in the not-too-distant future.

All are welcome to join Jay’s family at his funeral mass on Saturday, January 29, 2022, at 11 am at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Mechanicsburg, 400 E. Simpson St., Mechanicsburg, PA 17055.  After the funeral mass, the family will have a private burial service.  In keeping with Jay's wishes and colorful personality, the family requests that no one wear black.  Contributions in celebration of Jay’s life can be made to Tunnels to Towers (t2t.org) at 2361 Hylan Blvd, Staten Island, NY 10306.  Read Jay’s obituary and sign his guest book at buhrig.com.