John F. Kayser

Kayser, John F.
John Frederick ("Jack") Kayser, 88, died of natural causes on April 2, 2014 in Tampa, FL. A long-time Stamford resident, he was born on June 15, 1925, the youngest of six children, to Dr. and Mrs. Charles Douglas Kayser of Mt. Vernon, New York. He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Barbara MacLean Kayser of Tampa, a sister, Patricia Kayser Gehres of New Jersey, five children, Constance Porteus of Ridgefield, John Kayser, Jr. of Tampa, Alexandra Toman of Greenwich, Suzanne O'Brien of Stamford and William Kayser of Darby, MT, ten grandchildren, four great-grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by an infant daughter, Elizabeth MacLean Kayser. Jack served in the US Army during World War II. He received his basic training at Fort Riley, Kansas in 1943, which was then home to the Army's 1st Cavalry Division. He was proud that he completed much of his basic training on horseback. Following completion of training as a radio operator, including learning the Morse code, Jack joined the division in New Guinea and later became a Communications Chief. He participated in the invasion of Leyte in the northern Philippines in January 1945 where the division famously fought its way to Manila in its "Flying Column" formation. During this operation, the 1st Cavalry liberated over 3,000 Philippine civilian prisoners and over 60 captured US Army nurses. Jack participated in follow-on operations in the southern Philippines to mop up remaining pockets of Japanese resistance. With resistance officially declared at an end on July 1, 1945, the 1st Cavalry Division deployed from the Philippines to Japan in late August 1945, arriving in Yokohama on September 2, 1945, the same day that Japan formally surrendered onboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. The 1st Cavalry Division entered Tokyo six days later on September 8, 1945, making it the first US division to enter Japan's capital city. After four months of occupation duty, Jack redeployed to the United States and was honorably discharged with the rank of Technician Fourth Grade, equivalent to Sergeant. He qualified on the M1 rifle and earned the Combat Infantryman's Badge. His awards upon discharge included the Bronze Star Medal, Good Conduct Medal, World War II Victory Medal with 2 Bronze Service Stars, the Army of Occupation Medal with Japan Clasp and the Philippine Presidential Unit Citation Badge. In the early 1970s, he received a second Bronze Star Medal from the Army in the mail. In a letter accompanying the award, the Army explained the award recommendation was misplaced, but discovered 25 years later and approved. Before joining the Army, Jack was graduated from Mount Saint Michael's preparatory school in the Bronx where he played multiple sports. After the war, he attended Wesley College in Dover, Delaware where he excelled at basketball and met his future wife. Jack worked for many years as a sales executive for Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut and its successor company, Century Brass. He was a devout Catholic and one of the original members of St. Leo's Roman Catholic Church in Stamford, which he attended for over 40 years. He served twice as president of the church's Holy Name Society. Jack was a life-long patriot and for many years enjoyed exchanging letters on political matters with elected officials and others, including the late Wm. F. Buckley, Jr., also of Stamford. He also wrote many letters to the editor of the Stamford Advocate. Jack was a member of the Sons of the American Revolution, reflecting a long family history of military service in our nation's conflicts. Jack was interred on April 8, 2014 at the Sarasota National Cemetery in Sarasota, Florida. A US Army honor guard rendered military funeral honors.