Fred Kaczmarski

Fredrick David Kaczmarski, age 65, of Mulvane, KS, died Friday, April 4, 2025, at his residence. Fred, or always Freddy to me, his sister, was a gentle, caring man with a brilliant mind and a giant heart. Freddy was the youngest of three children born to Pete (Charles) and Beverly Kaczmarski in Pettibone, ND. His siblings were me, Jennifer, and Jeff, our older brother. We lived our whole upbringing in Pettibone until we left for college and then for careers and lives elsewhere. Freddy always had a love for family. He wasn't an extrovert for sure, but he certainly inherited a gift for gab from both sides of our family. He was the youngest cousin on our dad's side, who all grew up in Pettibone. Our older cousins knew Freddy best as a kid – in the words of our cousin Jill, "I always have had him frozen (in time) as a little guy with dancing black eyes, always so full of fun and a great smile that just lit him up." And more than one cousin on our mom's side remembers Freddy as being "mischievous." Everyone in Pettibone loved Fred, as he was curious, creative, kind, wickedly smart (but he was the last to admit that), and was often busy testing some theory or proving some scientific law. But Fred wasn't just a math and science guy. Freddy played school sports and loved climbing trees; he snared a gopher every Spring, kept it as a pet through the Summer, and released it in the Fall; he painted with grandma Zana, a locally well known artist; he spent many hours riding our country roads on his minibikes and motorcycles; and Fred was even the leader of the small Pettibone marching band. Fred loved growing up in Pettibone and on the prairie, listening to the Sand Hill Crane calling as they flew over our heads, and hunting grouse and snaring gophers. Fred loved reading about birds of prey and loved bird watching for eagles, hawks, owls, and other large birds common to central ND, like pelican, sand hill crane, and sometimes even whooping crane. Freddy continued his interest in birds of prey through his life, watching for birds while on vacation or work trips. Freddy was always interested in weather and climate. He could easily chat about local weather conditions, but could also explain exactly what happens during a lightning strike. In the early 80s, Fred and I enjoyed practicing our photography skills by taking timed release photos of lightning strikes. His photos were always better. Fred did not, however, enjoy the cold weather or constant wind of the rural North Dakota prairie. That wind, however, did offer Freddy an opportunity to calculate the correct tilt degree of launch of the Estes Rockets he built, according to the current wind velocity. Before he would shoot them off however, he would round up some younger kids to run like the wind to capture the rockets once they finally hit the ground - just in case his calculated tilt angle was incorrect. Or more probably, because the wind had gusted. Fred graduated as valedictorian of his 1977 graduation class from Pettibone HS and then went on to North Dakota State University to get a degree in Electronics and Electrical Engineering, following his brother, Jeff, who did the same. Shortly after graduating in 1981, Fred was hired by Boeing in Wichita, where he worked as an electrical engineer his entire career. I can't begin to explain what Fred did as an engineer for Boeing, so Gary Cochran, Fred's best friend and Boeing co-worker, explains Fred's career with Boeing here. In the spring of 1982 Fred left the cold of North Dakota for a Kansas heat wave. That's when he went to work for Boeing on his first assignment as an engineer in the nuclear hardening group. For more than 30 years, Fred worked on numerous Boeing airplanes. Many of those projects were classified at the time and some may still be. However, Fred made many notable contributions that can be discussed. Starting in the early 1980's Fred worked on B-1, B-2 and B-52 aircraft communication, navigation and weapons integration programs as an electromagnetic effects engineer. These projects required extensive travel that included roasting in hot airplanes for weeks at a time in places like Edwards Air Force Base in the Mojave Desert and Kelly Air Force Base, TX. In the late 1990's Fred started working on programs involving executive transport aircraft. These programs involved the VC-25A (Air Force One), C-32 and C-40 airplanes. Fred wrote and reviewed many engineering documents, conducted countless hours of ground tests and participated in numerous flight tests in Wichita and at Joint Base Andrews, MD. He also worked on an extensive upgrade to the Navy's E-6 airplane. Fred's career came full circle when he returned to the B-52 nuclear hardening program in about 2012. He retired from Boeing in early 2014.
Around 1990 Fred met Paula Williams, the love of his life and his absolute soul mate. They married in 1995 and adored their life together. They enjoyed blues music, spending time with family, raising adorable kitties, growing vegetable gardens and award-winning cactus, attending hot air balloon launches, and especially fishing. Paula's family's cabin on Council Grove Lake was a second home to them, finding them there most weekends in the Summer. But they also took fishing trips to North Dakota and Canada. Fred had to endure cold weather again on these trips, but it was worth it! Fred's love of family naturally extended to Paula's family. He so much enjoyed spending time with Paula's parents, siblings, and her nieces and nephews. Please see more of these memories shared by Paula's family in "Stories and Memories of Fred" on the Smith Mortuary - Mulvane website. Fred and Paula's perfect life was much too short however, as Paula courageously battled breast cancer for several years and died in 2011. Fred and Paula's kitties provided much-needed company and helped Fred get used to living alone again. He doted on his house kitties, and he lovingly provided food and shelter for a growing family of sweet feral cats living on his property. In 2020 Fred needed prostate surgery and ongoing cancer treatment. The surgery was successful but the side effects from chemo and extensive radiation were difficult to live with. Freddy's heartbreak over losing Paula and his deteriorating physical health never really recovered. The loss of our beloved Fred is heartbreaking. But we take comfort in the knowledge that he is no longer in pain, and he is now back together with Paula, the love of his life. Love you forever, Freddy.
Fred is survived by his brother Jeff Kaczmarski and sister-in-law Mary Budiac; his sister Jennifer Kaczmarski and brother-in-law Rob Goldsmith; step nephew and nieces Rob Moxley-Goldsmith, Terri Moxley, and Taya Moxley-Goldsmith; his sister-in-law Penni Smith and her husband Raymond Smith; his sister-in-law Pat Pope and her husband Barry Pope; his brother-in-law John Williams; and his step nieces and nephews Katie Greiner, George Nunemaker, Grayson Pope, William Pope, and Tyler Williams. Fred was preceded in death by the love of his life and soul mate, Paula Williams Kaczmarski; by his parents, Pete and Bev Kaczmarski; by Paula's parents Bob and Lola Williams; by Paula's sister Pam Rivers; and by Paula's sister-in-law Denise Williams. A Celebration of Life Service for Fred will be held Wednesday, April 30, 2025, 10:30 AM at Smith Mortuary – Mulvane Chapel, 501 SE Louis Blvd., Mulvane, KS. A reception will be held afterward in the reception hall with a catered lunch. Fred's service will be live-streamed. Please find the link for the live-stream at https://www.smithfamilymortuaries.com/smith-mortuary-mulvane In lieu of flowers, you may want to donate to American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, American Cancer Society, Susan G. Komen, Humane World for Animals, or The Nature Conservancy.