Name: Memorial service for Joseph Anthony Shymanski
Start: 2023-09-27T16:00:00.000Z
End: 2023-09-27T19:00:00.000Z
Location: Eastern Market

Shymanski

Joseph Anthony Shymanski "Joe"

Joseph "Joe" Anthony Shymanski, 51, passed away suddenly on September 3, 2023 at his home in Calvert County, Maryland. He was born on November 11, 1971 in Detroit, MI and grew up in Livonia, MI. Joe was known for his infectious optimism, boundless curiosity, and unwavering kindness. Joe exuded a light of love, laughter, and hope that will continue to burn brightly within all of us.

Joe's passion for photography began in Mr. Johnson's photo class at Stevenson High School where he also was Captain of the football and track teams. Joe learned how to shoot portraits at Focal Point Studio in Farmington, MI and was a photographer for The Michigan Daily as an undergrad at the University of Michigan. Joe's ability to put clients at ease with his fun-loving personality, combined with his eye for beauty and skill, made him a sought after photographer once he moved to Washington, DC in the late 90s. Joe sold his fine art photography at the Eastern Market on Capitol Hill with his business partner and best friend Alton for over 20 years, and was a well-known special events photographer.

Joe is survived by his two children, June and Jay Shymanski of Huntingtown, MD and his siblings, Thaddeus "Ted" Shymanski (Heather Glennie) and Mary Shymanski of Livonia, MI and Susan (Matt) Henry of Bozeman, MT. Joe was preceded in death by his parents, Ed and Gail Shymanski of Livonia, MI and grandparents, Theodore and Frances Shymanski, and Edwin and Mildred Russ. Joe was uncle to Janine, Henry and Evelyn Shymanski, Lucy Shymanski, and Abigail, Amelia and Adeline Henry. Joe had an extensive network of aunts, uncles and cousins throughout Michigan, the continental US and Poland, with whom he kept in regular contact. His closest and most trusted friends, as well as his band of brothers from the University of Michigan, mourn the loss of their best friend.

There will be a memorial for Joe at the Eastern Market on September 27, 2023 from 12 to 3 p.m. in Washington, DC. There will also be a funeral for Joe at St. Edith's Catholic Church in Livonia, MI on October 7, 2023 at 10:30 a.m.

The world, and especially his two children, June and Jay, will feel the loss of his effervescence and loving heart. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made for the benefit of his children to Raymond James (please write "June & Jay Shymanski - UTMA" in the memo field and mail to: Raymond James, 27333 Meadowbrook Rd., Suite 120, Novi, MI 48377). In addition, plans are in progress for a foundation in Joe's memory to celebrate his life and propel his legacy forward by helping DC public school students learn and cultivate their photography skills.

To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.

Published by The Washington Post on Sep. 27, 2023.

Memories and Condolences
for Joseph Shymanski

10 Entries

DJ Maynard

October 24, 2025

I am so sorry that you are not here anymore, passing on your wisdom and being a father to your two children. May you rest eternally, as you will be sorely missed by family and friends. God Bless you.

Anna Matynia

October 6, 2023

In loving memory of a wonderful person. We will love you and miss you always.

Faithful Blessings Bouquet - VASE INCLUDED

Anna Matynia & Poland's Family

Sent Flowers

UNA-USA

Planted Trees

Joe Bock

Planted Trees

Shirley Portnoy

September 28, 2023

Joe was one of those special people whose kind, generous spirit brought joy to those around him. His death is a great loss. May he rest in peace and may his memory bring comfort to all who knew him.
Shirley Portnoy

Bud Bailey

September 27, 2023

So sorry to learn of this family´s tragic lost. I never had the privilege to meet Joseph but learned about him through his brother Ted (golfing buddy) Praying for your family.

Gino DiClemente

September 27, 2023

I had the pleasure of sharing a house with Joe and his brother in 1990 at U of M. Joe was a special guy and I didn't realize it at the time, for he was so mature with things that mattered. Once I threw a snowball at his window for fun to startle him while studying, and it shattered it, and it was in the middle of freezing winter, and I thought I was gonna get it, but he laughed it off, and when I wanted to fix it, he went ahead and did so, and I had to force him to allow me to pay for the window pane. Another time, we were all gonna run the famed Naked Mile around campus, but we all chickened out, except Joe. So we went to cheer him on and when he was running past us, he stops and chats, while we are laughing and yelling to keep running. That was Joe. It was hard to square just how genuinely kind-hearted he was, and later in life, quite frankly, one reflects on how much better a human being he was, and how lucky we were all were to have him a part of our lives.

Gino DiClemente

September 27, 2023

Lived with Joe in 1990 at UofM at the Benjamin St house. His maturity for things that mattered, was so advanced for his age, that at the time was hard to relate. He lived in the first floor room, and during winter I once picked up snowball and chucked it as his window while he was studying, for fun. Instead it shattered the window in the freezing cold. When I got to house I feared a deserved beating from someone so physically imposing, and I offered to pay and fix it...instead Joe, just smiled and said he'd fix it. In a day he went out and got window pane and replaced it himself, and he was very hesitant to even take the money for the glass. I knew then, he was unique, and I was too immature to realize it at the time. Another time all of us were gonna run the Naked Mile where students run across campus naked, and we all wussed out in doing so, except Joe. So we went and cheered him on, and while running by, he heard us cheering him, and stops and chats, fully naked. We laughingly yelled to keep running and not to stop, and it didn't compute to him at first, but that was Joe. We ribbed him awhile for that. Very rarely do we come across a pure heart like this, and then as we get older, we fully realize they were just genuinely better human beings, and I am very honored I knew him.

Wayne Kirk

September 27, 2023

My condolences to the Shymanski families.

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