Frank J. Jerome Jr., a lifetime resident of Solvay, died in 2008 at the age of 82. He was the owner and president of Frank Jerome & Sons Plumbing and Heating for 49 years, retiring in 1996. He was survived by his wife of 61 years, the former Arlene Forger, and five children and their families.

Van Ryder Jerome served in the Army Air Corps from 1942 until 1946. He was stationed in the Phhilippines and then occupied Japan. He graduated from Solvay High School in 1940 and worked at Onondaga Pottery before the war. Afterward he owned and operated Jerome Dairy for many years. He lived in Westvale all his life and was an active member of the Solvay Masonic Order and Robinson Memorial Church. He died in 2004, survived by his wife, the former Betty Templar, who passed away in December, 2012. (Thanks to his daughter, Patricia Musengo, for providing the information.)

Anthony John worked for Central City Roofing until he retired in 1978. He died in 2009 at the age of 94.

Brothers George and Stuart Johnson were inducted into the Army on the same day, September 8, 1942. They were sons of Mildred and Howard H. Johnson, their father having been involved in one of Solvay's biggest controversies in the 1920s. As was often the case, the matter was political. Democrats had control of the village board in 1926 and chose to fire Police Chief Harry J. Hunt and replace him with Johnson. After a long court battle, Hunt was given his job back a year later when Republicans had regained power. Johnson resigned, though there was a very brief period in the spring of 1927 when Solvay actually had two police chiefs on the payroll.

There were three Johnson brothers, all of whom graduated from Syracuse University. Charles H. Johnson did it in 1939, George Johnson in 1942. After the war Stuart Johnson earned a degree in engineering.

A news item published on July 27, 1945 said T/Sgt. Pauline S. Johnston, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Duncan M. Johnston of Camillus, had arrived in Paris, one of the first WACs to be assigned to occupational forces in Europe, according to a report from the Paris bureau of the Associated Press. I believe the report was in error about her first name, and that this was Paulette Johnston. The Paris assignment particularly suited her because that's where her parents had met while her father was an Army Corporal during World War I. Mrs. Johnson grew up in the village of Semur, France.

Johnston died in December, 1993. He retired in 1989 after 15 years with Niagara Mohawk Power Company; previously had worked with his father’s dealership, Johnston Motor Sales in Solvay.

Charles G. Julian Jr. returned to Solvay and remained there until his death in 2001. He had retired in 1991 as an electrical engineer for the Syracuse Developmental Center. Survivors included his wife of 52 years, the former Mary Femano, and two sons, David of Minnesota and Jerry of East Syracuse.

Edward J. Kaczmarek died in 2011 at the age of 90. He was employed by Niagara Mohawk Power Corporation for 35 years, retiring in 1981. Survivors included his wife of 63 years, Petronella; their son, Edward of Solvay; daughters Carol Lovell of Skaneateles, Anne Kaczmarek of Texas, Mary Kay Kaczmarek of Solvay, and Denise Sieklucki of Solvay, and his brother, Arthur Kaczmarek of Syracuse.

Peter P. Kaleta returned to Solvay, living at 110 Second Street until shortly before his death in 1977 at the age of 65. He was a retired employe of the Town of Geddes Highway Department and a member of the Syracuse Disabled Army Veterans Post 8.

Joseph Karpinski died in 2001 at the age of 84. A graduate of Mount Saint Mary's College, he lived in Fairmount and worked 30 years at Allied Chemical Corporation (Solvay Process). A fine athlete, he played two years of minor league baseball before the war. He is in the Mount Saint Mary's College Hall of Fame.

After the war Stanley Karpinski and his wife lived in Bridgeport, New York, where he died in 1986. There are two places in New York called Bridgeport, by the way. The Karpinskis lived in the one near the south shore of Oneida Lake. His obituary in the Chittenango-Bridgeport Times (July 23, 1986) said he was well known locally as an accordion player who performed with the Ozark Mountain Boys, Duke Dixon's Swingbillies and Mickey Dopkowski's Polka Notes.

The Karpinski brothers had five sisters — Mary Julia Zalewski, Stephanie Jasinski, Lottie Lenweaver, Catherine Czyz and Joanna Komuda — and the 1986 obituary mentioned above listed all five sisters as residents of Solvay.

(If you check out Joseph Karpinski's baseball statistics, you might stumble upon a Stanley Karpinski who was a pitcher who had a long career in the minor leagues. These two Karpinskis were not related, so far as I know.)

Fred Kelly, a resident of Westvale, died in 2002 at the age of 79. He was a member of Coonley-Nojaim Disabled American Veterans, Chapter 30. He was survived by brothers Louis, of Pittsburg, California, and James F. Kelly of Solvay.

Stanley Kishman was well known in Solvay for his work in the school system, particularly as the high school football coach. He died in 2007 at the age of 93. His wife, Ursula Tarolli Kishman, died four years later, at 97.

Chester J. Kolakowski retired as a toolmaker from Carrier Corporation. He died in 1989 at the age of 72, survived by his wife, Mary; a son, David, of Syracuse, and a daughter, Sharon Zeck, of New York City.

When Raymond J. Kolceski died in 2004, at age 81, his obituary said he was nicknamed "Peanuts." He and his wife, the former Mary Sabene, lived in Solvay until 2001 when they moved to Canastota to live with the family of his son, Daniel. Raymond Kolceski received the Purple Heart during the war. Afterward he went to work for the Onondaga County Department of Drainage and Sanitation. He was an avid bowler and golfer and raised beagles. His wife, Mary, died in 2009. Besides Daniel, they had another son, David, of Solvay, and several grandchildren.

Richard "Klondike" Kosakowski, a native of Solvay, died in 1998 at Mercy Health and Rehabilitation Center in Auburn. He was 75. After the war he was a grinder at Crucible Specialty Metals in Geddes. He is buried at Onondaga County Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Onondaga Hill.

Navy veteran Steven Kotanich was described as a Pearl Harbor survivor in his 2008 obituary. He was a buyer for Dunk & Bright Furniture for many years. He was 83 years old when he died, predeceased by his wife, Alicia, and his three sons, Gary, Gregory and Peter. He was survived by his daughter, Lorraine Clarke of Camillus.

Edward F. "Kozy" Kozuboski worked for Syracuse China before and for a few years after the war. Then he and his wife, the former Helen Kalinak, moved to Johnson City. He was an avid fisherman and gardener. Among his survivors were his two daughters, Linda Kozuboski of Johnson City and Michelle Blauvelt of Horseheads, and his brother, Joseph (below).

His son, Pfc. William F. Kranz Jr., was killed in Vietnam in 1967.

Robert Kremin was recalled to duty in 1951 for the Korean War. He retired as an Army Major. He and his wife, Claire, moved their family to Howlett Hill Road and their allegiance switched from Solvay orange and blue to Marcellus High School green and white.

Besides having a long career in the military, Robert Kremin was a brakeman with the New York Central Railroad, a mail carrier and assistant postmaster of the Camillus Post Office, and a volunteer fireman in Solvay and Howlett Hill.

Robert L. Kremin died in 1987. He was 69. Survivors included his brother, Howard, who had moved to Phoenix, Arizona.

And while this may seem strange, I recommend that anyone who lived in or near Solvay in the 1950s and '60s read the online obituary for Mrs. Claire H. Grabowski Kremin. It'll bring back a lot of memories.

Walter Kurowski died in 1993 at the age of 81. He was a life resident of Solvay and worked many years at Lipe Rollway Corporation. He was a member of the Coonley-Nojaim Chapter, Disabled American Veterans.

Ernest D. "Kish" Kurtz was a service supervisor for 37 yearss with the New York Telephone Company. He was a volunteer fireman in Solvay for 68 years and former chief at the Mountaintop Hose Company. He died in 2009 at the age of 87.

John I. "Bud" Kurtz was awarded the Purple Heart and served in the African and European Theaters of Operation in the war. He, too, was a long-time member of the Solvay Fire Department and chief from 1969-70. He retired as foreman of the Carpenters and Painters Division at Allied Chemical Corporation in 1981. He died in 2003 at the age of 84.