Theodore Stanley Zemenick

Theodore Zemenick died peacefully at his home in Grosse Pointe Woods at the age of 102. He was born in Weirwood, West Virginia on February 21, 1923. His parents, Joseph and Josephine Zemenick, were both immigrants from southern Poland. Ted’s father, Joseph, and his uncle, Frank, were coal miners. Both men were killed in a mining accident on December 12, 1923 when Ted was 10 months old.

Josephine moved to Detroit with Ted and his two brothers, Cass and Charles, and went to work at her sister and brother-in-law’s beauty parlor on the east side of Detroit. During their grade school years, Ted and his brothers were boarded and educated at St. Francis Home for Boys. Josephine would visit them on Sundays and work to support herself and her sons the rest of the week. Eventually, Josephine opened her own beauty salon on Chene Street. The family lived on the first floor of the building and Josephine rented out the upper flat.

Ted attended Northeastern High School and, at the age of 16 (or 17), met his wife, Rita Koperski, while waiting in line outside a bakery. The couple was married at 7:00 am on May 5, 1944 at St. Albertus Church in Detroit while Ted was on a short leave from the US Army Air Force.

During World War II, Ted served as a navigator of a B-17 in the 340 B Squadron of the 97th Bomb Group. He flew 30 missions over Nazi occupied Europe as lead navigator. In February 1945 his plane was shot down over northern Italy and he and his surviving crew members were taken prisoner. They were incarcerated in a prison camp in Germany and were later liberated by Patton’s Third Army as it drove east. Ted knew that he was going to make it home when he saw General Patton (complete with pistols) riding by in a tank. At the end of the war, Ted was honorably discharged as a first lieutenant. In 2001, Ted was reunited with other surviving crew members while attending the posthumous presentation of a Silver Star to their co-pilot, Lt. Gerald Flannick, who died keeping control of the plane so that the other crew members could bail out.

After the war, Ted and Rita wanted a better life for their family which, over the years, grew to six children. They bought their first home in Harper Woods in 1951. Education was stressed in their home. Ted was very proud of his children’s and grandchildren’s achievements both in pursuing a higher education and in pursuing various careers including health care, law, education, and information technology.

Ted worked at Michigan Bell Telephone Company and retired in his early 60s after 45 years of service. Ted and Rita enjoyed weekends at the cottage Ted built on Harsens Island and spending March in Florida - usually with various assorted kids and grandkids visiting them there. Ted loved gardening, reading (and listening to books when his eyesight began to fail), repairing, building, and painting.

Ted and Rita celebrated their 75th anniversary with a blessing at the Capuchin Monastery in Detroit on May 5, 2019. Rita later died on November 6 of that year. Ted and Rita created a loving family who will always remember their Dad and Mom (or Pappa and Grandma).

Ted will be missed by his and Rita’s six children: Gregory (Bernadette); Susan Dely (David); Deva Ludwig (Tom), Patrice Ticknor (Robert); Michael (Mary); and Laura Tassopoulos (Andrew). Ted will also be missed by their twelve grandchildren, Diana, Aaron, Mark, Asrael, Stephen, Katie, Zach, Alex, Alissa, Ash, Andreana, and Ayla. Ted was predeceased by his beloved grandson, Matthew. Ted lived to know and enjoy his and Rita’s twenty great grandchildren, Aaron Christopher, Nicholas, Mark, Catherine, John, Samantha, Allie, Lauren, Ezra, Will, Addy, Jonathan, Elle, Theodore (Teddy), Isla, Emma, Maximus (Max), Sophie, Theodore (Theo) and Margot.

An instate will be held at Our Lady Star of the Sea, located at 467 Fairford, Grosse Pointe Woods, MI, 48236, on January 31, 2026, starting at 9:30 am. A Memorial Mass will follow at the same venue at 10:00 am.