John J. Kondek

John J. Kondek, 68, of Yorktown, Va., passed away peacefully Tuesday, Aug. 17, 2021, in Riverside Regional Medical Center, Newport News, Va.

Born in Wilkes-Barre on Feb. 26, 1953, John "Jack" was the son of the late John J. and Mary B. Kondek.

Jack was a graduate of Wyoming Valley West High School, Class of 1971. He attended Penn State University for one year and transferred to Wilkes College, where he was awarded a three-year full tuition Air Force ROTC scholarship. At Wilkes, he met and fell in love with his wife, Joanne M. Kondek. He graduated from Wilkes in 1975 with a bachelor of arts in urban planning. He completed his master's degree in operations management while stationed in Arkansas.

Jack was commissioned in the Air Force as a second lieutenant, and entered active duty in Nov. 1975. Jack had various assignments throughout his 20-plus-year career with the Air Force that took him to Columbus AFB, Ohio, Castle AFB, California, Grand Forks AFB, North Dakota, Omaha, Nebraska, Blytheville AFB, Arkansas, Ellsworth AFB, South Dakota, Headquarters ACC at Langley AFB, Virginia, and Elmendorf AFB, Alaska. Most notably, while stationed at Ellsworth, he was part of one of three crews that volunteered to fly in Desert Storm. He flew over 20 missions, culminating in being awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. After his medical separation from the Air Force, he worked for SRA International at Ft. Eustis, Virginia, as a joint operations planning and execution system (JOPES) instructor, and curriculum developer for General Dynamics as a logistics transformation analyst, as a deployment analyst at Langley AFB, and most recently for the United States Government at Langley AFB as a program analyst in charge of contracting and budgets totaling over $30 million.

Jack is survived by his daughter, Caroline; his granddaughter, who he and his wife adopted in May 2006; his son, John and his wife, Melissa, daughter, Gina, and granddaughters, Alexa, Olivia, Emma, Elizabeth and Emily, who reside in Virginia. He is also survived by his sisters, Joann Brandt, Drums; and Marie Drugan, White Haven; nieces, great-nephews and cousins. Roman, Jack's beloved basset hound, will also greatly miss his best buddy.

The family would like to thank Paul Lawson Evans Jr., MD, and all the nurses, doctors and staff members at Riverside Regional Medical Center who provided compassionate care to Jack.

A Mass of Christian Burial with Military Funeral Honors was celebrated Saturday, Aug. 28, at St. Joan of Arc Church, Yorktown, Va.

Arrangements were from Amory Funeral Home, Yorktown, Va.