Peter A. Forgach

EATONTOWN, N.J. — May 5, 1935 — March 25, 2021

It is said that the remarkable man is one who can be both invincible and invisible at the same time; Peter A. Forgach was one such remarkable man. Peter passed away peacefully at his home with family at his side on March 25, 2021, just a few weeks shy of his eighty-sixth birthday.

The only son of Peter and Mamie (Zmijewski) Forgach, he was born and raised in Glen Lyon, a once-booming coal mining town in Luzerne County. After graduating from Newport Township High School, he chose to pursue a military career and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from The Citadel in Charleston, S.C. As a Citadel graduate, he went on to serve our nation with distinction for 24 years in the U.S. Army.

Over the course of his Army career, he was responsible for the management of personnel and equipment in the areas of supply and maintenance at locations in the Continental U.S., Vietnam, Europe, Thailand and Korea. He retired from the Army in 1985, at the rank of Lieutenant Colonel; his last assignment was at Fort Monmouth, N.J., and the family made their home in Eatontown.

Ever so humble and unassuming, Peter instilled his values of honesty, integrity, hard work and perseverance in each of his children. He was a skilled craftsman and woodworker and he loved to tinker; there was no project too big or too small. His children and grandchildren learned much from watching him work and we are all a bit more self-reliant as a result of his tutelage.

He will be forever dearly loved by his high school sweetheart and wife of 63 years, Patricia (Najaka) Forgach; his five children, Ellyn Forgach; Jeffrey (Suzanne) Forgach; Amy (Christopher) Sonntag; Kathryn Forgach (Denis Thesing); Andrew Forgach (Cathy Ippolito). He is adored by his 12 grandchildren, Jacqueline, Christina (Benjamin), Peter (Samantha), Anna, Lily, Garrett, Clint, Jessica, James, Sophia, Olivia and Jack. He was also recently blessed with his first great-grandchild, Evelyn Rose.

The family will keep his memory alive by regaling the little ones with colorful accounts of their Poppa. He is also survived by his sister, Margaret Forgach; brother-in-law, Andrew Lakata; nieces, Patricia and Andrea; several cousins and very special lifelong friends.

True to his generous and selfless nature, Peter has donated his body for medical science and education to Robert Wood Johnson Medical School Anatomical Association Body Program. In respecting his wishes, there will be no prior calling hours.