Wallace A. Olbrych

Wallace A. Olbrych
1938 - 2023
Chicopee
Wallace Andrew Olbrych passed away peacefully at St. Francis Hospital on Sunday, August 13, 2023, surrounded by his loving family. The son of the late Rose (Kobak) and Walter S. Olbrych, Sr., (Assessor for City of Chicopee and candidate for Mayor), Wally was born on December 1, 1938, in Chicopee. He graduated from Chicopee High School and attended American International College. He served in the Massachusetts Air National Guard for ten years, achieving the rank of Staff Sergeant, prior to his honorable discharge in March of 1967. While serving in the 104th Tactical Fighter Wing, Wally was deployed to Phalsbourg-Bourscheid Air Base, France, from October 1961 through July 1962. He worked for the Dow Jones/Wall Street Journal Company, Inc., in Chicopee for 35 years. Following his retirement, he worked for the Polish National Credit Union in Chicopee for 13 years. He was an active parishioner and was commissioned in 1971 as one of the first laypersons permitted to assist as a Eucharistic Minister at the former St. Patrick's Church in Chicopee, and at Sacred Heart Church in Springfield. He loved going to Air Shows and attending events at Barnes Air Base. An avid golfer, Wally enjoyed many close friends while playing at East Mountain Country Club. He and Ellen loved their yearly trips to Key Colony Beach with dear friends. They also treasured time spent watching their grandchildren participate in their numerous athletic endeavors. In addition to his parents, Wally was predeceased by his wife of 55 years, Ellen M. (Connolly) Olbrych, whom he missed dearly. He is survived by his daughter, Kara Finken and her husband, Peter, of Simsbury, CT; his son Sean Olbrych, of Greewich, CT; grandchildren McKenna Finken, Andrew Finken and his wife, Melissa, as well as his three sibling, Rosemary Marcil and her husband, Rich, of Pompano Beach, FL, Paul Olbrych and his wife, Kathleen, of Chicopee, and Walter S. Olbrych, Jr., of Chicopee. Calling hours will be held on Sunday, August 20th from 2:00 to 5:00pm at the Corridan Funeral Home, 333 Springfield St., Chicopee, MA. Friends and family are invited to gather directly at church for a Mass of Christian Burial to be held at Sacred Heart Church, 395 Chestnut St., Springfield, on Monday, August 21st, at 11:00am, with burial to follow in St. Stanislaus Cemetery, Chicopee. Donations are kindly requested in lieu of flowers to be made to The Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Springfield, 577 Carew St. Springfield, MA 01104.
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