Obituary of Walter Antoniuk

"Walter Antoniuk passed away Wednesday, April 18, 2007 at MetroWest Medical Center in Natick. Walter was born near Chelm, Poland on July 15, 1920. His father, Mark Antoniuk, who was a prisoner of war in World War I, passed away in 1922. Walter spent his younger years working a small farm with his mother, Helen Antoniuk; he attended a local grammar school until the fifth grade. In 1939, at the age of 19, Walter was taken as a civilian prisoner by the German army and was a forced laborer until 1944. After befriending a German guard near the end of the war, Walter and several other prisoners escaped and fled back to Poland. At the end of the war, Walter joined the American Occupation Army in Germany, in which he held the rank of Mess Sergeant until 1949. Walter immigrated to the United States in November 1950 aboard the USS General Sturgis. Upon arrival in the United States, Walter learned his fifth language (English, in addition to Polish, Russian, German, and Ukrainian) and obtained US citizenship. Walter worked at the Moore Drop Forge Company, in Springfield for 33 years. In May 1958, Walter married Florence G. Tenczar, of Holyoke. While living in Holyoke, they had a daughter, Kristina, in July 1959 they then moved to South Hadley, where they had a son, Peter, in November 1967. Walter raised his children with his wife in South Hadley; their home and pool on Linden Drive was always open to the neighborhood children. In 1976, Walter’s mother located him via the American Red Cross; she was living what had become part of the Soviet Union following World War II. In 1977, he traveled to the Soviet Union to visit with his mother, whom he had not seen since 1939. Walter was widowed in June 1997 at the age of 76. In the last 10 years of his life, Walter attended Peter’s wedding in 1998 and gave Kristina away at her wedding in 2002. He constantly visited with Kristina and her husband Paul Brouillette in Easthampton, and Peter, his wife Roberta, and their two grandchildren, Ethan and Cameron, in Ashland. His grandchildren were his inspiration through the difficulties of his later years. In 2005, Walter was diagnosed with renal cell cancer, which he fought with conviction. Even while fighting cancer, Walter embraced his senior years by vacationing on Cape Cod, helping with projects on his children’s homes, and shark fishing off Gloucester. Most of all, Walter enjoyed meeting new people and sharing his plethora of astonishing stories with them. In 2007, Walter moved to Framingham to be closer to his grandchildren. He fell seriously ill in March until his passing in April of 2007. He passed away peacefully with Kristina, Paul, Roberta, and Peter by his side. Walter was a remarkable father; his strength, resolve, and perseverance are an inspiration to his family. He will be missed dearly. He leaves two children, Kristina Helen and Peter Mark, daughter-in-law Roberta Ruel, son-in-law Paul Brouillette, two grandchildren, Ethan Robert and Cameron James, and two step grandchildren, Meredith and Colin Brouillette. Calling hours are Saturday April 21, 2007 from 11:00-2:00 p.m. at the Beers & Story South Hadley Funeral Home. Flowers are welcomed or donations may be may in his memory to the American Heart Association or American Cancer Society."