John S Dmytrenko

John was born on March 29, 1946, of Ukrainian descent in an internment camp in Neu Ulm Germany, to Stanislaw and Natalia (Alexandriawska) Dmytrenko. In 1950, John came to the United States by way of Ellis Island with his parents. After becoming a permanent resident of the USA, the family moved within the Ukrainian community in Chicago. It was there he, at the age of 13, met the love of his life, Laura (Mitacek), who lived just across the street.

John served his county in the United States Army during the Vietnam War. He then graduated from the University of Illinois, majoring in Electrical Engineering. With his background, he easily found employment with the Department of Defense and NASA.

John adored his grandchildren and loved attending their sporting events and performances regularly.

Together, he and Laura would visit the Senior Center for various social events. Their favorite activity was always gardening. Planting vegetables and flowers, keeping their plants and flowers well-tended was a soothing past-time. He also kept busy as a Special Olympics parent, keeping up with his son Alex’s busy schedule of events.

In October of 2025, John had the opportunity to participate in an Honor Flight with his son-in-law, Martin, as his Guardian. The entire family flew to Washington D.C. to witness John finally experiencing the hero’s welcome that he deserved.

John is survived by his wife of 57 years, Laura; children Dina (Mike) and Julie (Martin), and Alex; grandchildren Ryan, Matthew, Jackson, and Stella; sister Tamara (Michael), and many nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents, sister Olga and brother-in-law William.

A visitation will be held on Wednesday, January 14th at 10:00 AM until time of memorial mass at 11:00 AM at St. Brigid Parish - Church of St. Patrick, 15000 W Wadsworth Rd, Wadsworth, IL. Committal to be held privately, at Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery, Elwood, IL.