Lt. Col. John Stanley Polickoski, US Army (ret)

Lt. Col. John Stanley Polickoski, 89, of Greensboro, redeployed to the Lord on Aug. 28, 2024, just days before his 90th birthday. The family will receive visitors from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, at Hanes-Lineberry North Elm Funeral Home in Greensboro, to include a rosary prayer service beginning at 6:30 p.m. A Funeral Mass and celebration of his life will be at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024, at Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church, followed by a reception and final interment with full Military Honors at Westminster Gardens with afterward.

John was predeceased by his beloved wife of 63 years, Marianne. He is survived by his three children, Patricia of Greensboro; Robert (Rebecca) of Fredericksburg, VA; and James (JoAnn) of Chattanooga, TN; 12 grandchildren (Joseph, Elizabeth [Jordan], Thomas [Cassidy]; Jennifer, Stephanie, Peter, David; Kathleen, Sarah [Stephen], Nicholas, Johnathan, Margaret); and three great-granddaughters (Georgia, Isabella, Anastasia).

He was born in August 1934 in Queens, NY, the only child of John Dominick Polickoski and Veronica Jakuc Polickoski. John graduated from St. Stanislaus Elementary School and Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School, both in Brooklyn, NY, in 1948 and 1952. He then was appointed to the United States Military Academy (ironically having only applied to the Naval Academy), graduating in 1956 and commissioned as a Second Lieutenant, Field Artillery. After swapping a blind date with a fellow West Point cadet, he met the love of his life, and after much ballroom dancing and ice skating, married Marianne D. Blaine at the West Point Catholic Chapel in June 1957.

John’s 22-year Army career moved them across the country and around the world, beginning with Artillery & Gunnery School at Fort Bliss in El Paso, TX. He was then sent to Fort Maguire AFB/Fort Dix, NJ, headquarters of the NY Air Defense Sector, where his daughter was born. From there he attended Army Artillery School at Fort Sill, OK, transferring to the Air Defense Artillery and becoming one of the first to work on the Nike Missile Project (while avoiding the fire ants!). The Army then sent him to Baumholder, Germany, where his older son was born, just as the Cold War was ramping up and the Berlin Wall was being constructed. While in Europe, John and Marianne enjoyed traveling with their young family, even taking a tense trip to West Berlin in East Germany.

Prophetic to his calling after the military, John decided to transfer to the Finance Corps, and upon returning to the States, he attended the Army Finance School at Fort Benjamin Harrison in Indianapolis, IN. He completed his certification at Syracuse University’s Army Comptroller School and simultaneously completed his Masters of Business Administration in 1967. While his family weathered a snowy year in upstate New York, he was deployed to the Vietnam War for a year during the Tet Offensive. Returning from deployment, John’s next duty station was at the Pentagon in the Office of Budget and Personnel (where his younger son was born), then transferring to the Sacramento (CA) Army Depot. Following his graduation from the Command and General Staff College, he returned to the Washington, DC, area (and to the same house) to the U.S. Army Audit Agency as program director for commands and staff audits. John and Marianne chose to retire in 1978, and the Army awarded his faithful service with the Legion of Merit.

After John’s military retirement, Marianne chose Greensboro as their ultimate destination following a Sweet Adelines trip to the area, noting how beautiful the foliage and flowers were. They both quickly became immersed in their beloved Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church, with John serving decades as a lector and eucharistic minister. He was a pillar in the Knights of Columbus Council 939, working tirelessly on fundraising efforts, most notably the Seminarian Fund, and eventually served as Grand Knight and Fourth Degree Faithful Navigator. He led fundraising efforts to bring outdoor lights to the baseball field at Grimsley High School, and in his later years served as a Guilford County voting precinct judge. After completing an accounting degree from UNC-Greensboro in 1981, he became a Certified Public Accountant in 1982. John worked as Finance Director for Forsyth-Stokes Mental Health Center, and then at AT&T supporting defense contracts (later Lucent Technologies). After barely surviving a horrific car accident in 1995, he retired for good in 2000.

Once their nest was empty, John and Marianne continued their dedication to their church and also enjoyed boating and watching the water from their condo on Lake Norman. They traveled the U.S. and the world on multiple cruises, riverboats, and group tours, plus attended a dozen West Point Class of ’56 and Company reunions – all while keeping pace with their grandchildren’s first communions, confirmations, graduations, and weddings.

John lived and led in both his military and local communities and family enough for three lifetimes with the greatest sense of duty and honor. We love and miss him – our dear father, father-in-law, grandfather, and great-grandfather.

Donations may be made to Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church, 2203 West Market St., Greensboro, NC 27403.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.haneslineberryfhnorthelm.com