Barbara Zakrzewska Borowiecki, 91, of Springfield, passed away on Friday March 18, 2016 at St. Joseph’s Home. She was born on November 20, 1924 in Warsaw, Poland to Stanislaw Zakrzewski and Irene Rago Zakrsewska. Barbara was a survivor of the German and then the Communist occupation of Poland during and after World War II, and was able to escape with her family to the United States in 1947. She had enormous passion for teaching and learning new things, and after she arrived in the United States, Barbara set out to learn English and enrolled in George Washington University. She later moved to Indiana and received both Bachelors and Masters degrees from Indiana University. After relocating to Madison, Wisconsin she completed her Doctorate in Geography. Barbara took the position of professor in the Department of Geography at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 1960, and became Chairman of the department in 1971. She retired in 1992.
Among Barbara’s many life accomplishments was her instrumental role in the acquisition and transfer of the American Geographic Society Map Collection to the Golda Meir Library at the University of Wisconsin –Milwaukee. The Map Collection is one of the finest cartographic assemblages in the U.S. and one of the most distinguished in existence, with maps dating back to the 1400’s. In 2009, Barbara received the Distinguished Samuel Finley Breese Morse Medal for “the encouragement of geographical research” for being instrumental in securing and preserving the AGS Map Collection.
Barbara married her Polish sweetheart, Mieczyslaw (“Mitch”) Borowiecki , by proxy in 1950, while she was living in the U.S. and he remained in Poland. With Mitch unable to leave Communist Poland, the marriage was annulled in 1959. Mitch was able to secure a travel visa to the U.S. in 1971 and traveled with his young son, Tomasz, to Milwaukee, Wisconsin to remarry his Polish sweetheart in 1971.
Barbara enjoyed her family, nature, reading and teaching. She was a prolific writer in her specialty, glacial geomorphology. She was an active member in the “Polanki” Polish Women’s Club of Milwaukee and was instrumental in developing Polish, East European and Russian Studies at UWM. She was a member of the Church of St Jude in Rochester, Il.
Mrs. Borowiecki is survived by her step son, Tomasz W. Borowiecki and his wife (Sandra W. Borowiecki) of Springfield and two grandchildren: Andrew J. Borowiecki and Rebecca S. Borowiecki. She was preceded in death by her brother Jack Zakrzewski.
A Visitation will be held from 10:00am until 12:00pm followed immediately by a Funeral Mass on Tuesday March 22, 2016 at the Church of St Jude, 633 South Walnut in Rochester, IL. Burial will be private at St. Adalbert Cemetery in Milwaukee. Memorial contributions may be made to the American Geographical Society.
Please visit the online “Life Remembered Story” at www.bischfuneralhomewest.com
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