Thaddeus Alphonse Lindner

beloved wife of 68 years, Mary Jean.

Tad was born third of four sons to Janusz and Jadwiga Lindner in Syracuse, New York on

June 10, 1926. Growing up in a first-generation Polish home and community, he spent as

much time speaking Polish as English and living with the close community of his extended

family.

Tad’s childhood and youth were ones of modest opportunity and simple joys like learning

how to play golf from and caddying for his uncle Al or working the weekly Sunday circuit of

large family dinners that rotated from his cousins to his grandmother’s to finally his own

family’s home.

During WWII, Tad received his draft notice but for health reasons was rejected. Seeing all

his friends go off to serve while he stayed home never sat right with him. Using his power

of persuasion, he ultimately got his PFC stripe and in 1946 served as a clerk in Japan as part

of the Occupation. When the generals he served heard he liked golf, and had a 1 handicap,

he often found himself assigned as a ringer when an Army general played a match with

Navy admirals on Japan’s top golf course near Mt. Fuji.

After discharge and upon his older brother’s encouragement, Tad moved to the

Washington suburbs and began attending classes through the GI bill at George Washington

University while babysitting his young nephew. This post WWII community at GWU of the

late 1940’s and early 1950’s became the source of Tad’s most treasured experiences and

beloved gifts. His experiences at GW also served as the foundation for characteristics and

actions Tad later was known for: leadership, entrepreneurialism, excellence, loyalty,

service to the community and others, respect from his peers and an abiding belief that

one’s handshake was one’s bond.

After becoming a residential student, Tad joined the Sigma Nu fraternity and began to excel

in his social, athletic and academic life. In 1951, as part of a rout against the standing

parties and candidates, Tad was advanced as an alternative candidate, and running with

the campaign slogan “Vote T.A.D.” (tireless, alert, diligent), was elected Student

Government President for 1950-1951 academic year. From his first year at GW Tad earned

a spot on the school’s golf team, later being inducted into GW’s Athletic Hall of Fame. At the

same time the previously underperforming student earned the respect of his professors.

One such professor recommended Tad for a job as he knew Tad was always seeking parttime

jobs to make ends meet – and, thanks to an interest taken in him by a local

businessman, Tad borrowed the princely sum of $90 to obtain the lease on a small parking

lot located where the Kennedy Center now stands. Thus, started what was ultimately to

become Colonial Parking, Inc., Washington’s largest parking services company that Tad and

Serge named after their alma mater, the GWU Colonials. His loyalty to GW continued later

as he went on to be a founding member of the Board of Trustees of the school and served

on the board for over twenty years.

Paling in comparison to those great developments in his life, none was more important

than his meeting the love of his life, Mary Jean Wellford during those years at GW. At the

time he was finishing his undergraduate degree and Mary Jean was pursuing her graduate

studies. Meeting on a chance encounter, Tad kept his promise to his fraternity brother to

“keep an eye on Mary Jean”, and they went on to marry in May 1952. They have lived a

devoted life together for more than 68 years. They began their lives together in modest

form, living in Mary Jean’s home, commuting in her car and living off her salary while Tad

attended to the fledgling parking company. Tad and Mary Jean’s adventure together led to

a life full of family, friends, world travel, playing golf courses throughout the country and

world, and the opportunity to make financial and leadership contributions to the

communities, organizations and initiatives they valued.

Tad’s reputation for hard work and honesty helped the company grow and succeed. He

certainly enjoyed the professional success yet found the impact he had on others through

building partnerships and by providing employment and advancement opportunity more

fulfilling. This included the respect and fondness he felt from many of the company’s

employees, most likely driven by his practice of maintaining an open-door policy and his

willingness to listen to any grievance or request for special assistance. He was particularly

pleased at how Colonial Parking provided advancement opportunities to DC’s underserved

and less formally educated residents, knowing personally that formal education was not

the only criteria for potential. Also, with a chuckle of bafflement Tad found it pleasing that

his small company became, as early as the 1970’s, one of the largest employers of

Ethiopians outside of Addis Ababa; to some extend it reminded him of how the US became a

home and place of opportunity to his own father who was well educated and talented but

struggled after immigrating here following his service and injury during WWI.

In 1960, Tad and Mary Jean moved to Kensington, Maryland with their expanding family.

Now, with four children, they spent the next twenty years raising their three sons and

daughter, growing the company and increasing his involvement and commitment to the

broader community through taking on leadership volunteer roles and beginning what

would become a six decades long commitment to helping those in need via the contribution

of his time, talent and financial resources. His initial philanthropic focus was directed to

providing educational opportunities to those, like Tad, who would not have been able to

pursue higher education and gain the subsequent opportunities without financial support

from others. Thousands of students have benefitted from his and Mary Jean’s quiet

scholarships and other support directed towards their respective alma maters, as well as

numerous schools in the greater DC area, Poland, Ethiopia and Kenya.

In 1980, Tad and Mary Jean relocated back into the revitalizing DC and began sharing their

time between Washington and Boynton Beach, FL, where they enjoyed 25 years of

friendship, travel and golf and where he was a member of Columbia Country, Burning Tree

and Pine Tree Country Clubs. In 2008, now in their 80’s, Tad began to complete his

retirement from Colonial Parking and he and Mary Jean relocated to Fox Hill in Bethesda,

Maryland. As some of the initial residents enjoying life at Fox Hill, they actively encouraged

others to enjoy what they felt was the perfect home for their last years.

While Tad’s success led to leadership and recognition in the local business and broader

community, he mostly shunned public attention. The strongest values he conveyed to his

children beyond the importance of family, was to act with integrity and to support one’s

community with time, talent and financial resources. He attributed many of the business

opportunities he enjoyed in his career to his reputation for integrity as well as just being a

good citizen, something he urged his grandchildren to strive for in life. During the years of

his business success and philanthropic leadership, he was often recognized. However,

among the many awards and recognitions, the one most treasured by him was not a public

award by a civic organization or educational institution, but rather a major and secret

contribution from a cherished friend and business colleague in his honor and that of his

late business partner that created an endowed professorship in business ethics at his alma

mater, GWU.

Tad often expressed his bafflement of having been so blessed in his life and the many

opportunities he experienced that he could never have imagined occurring. He frequently

queried, “why have I been so fortunate to have this life?”

Tad is survived by his beloved wife Mary Jean, four children, Rusty (Mimsy), Gary (Jenée),

Eric (Ellen) and Ann Morrison (Patrick), and eleven grandchildren: Thaddeus II,

Christopher, Samuel, Matt, Sarah, Blake, Mary Faith and Jones Lindner, Rebecca Clarkson

(Tucker), and Emma and Colleen Morrison. He is also survived by first cousins, and many

nieces and nephews.

Tad was known by many for his business and personal success, generosity and unusual yet

effective short game, especially in match play. Yet Tad loved and touched so many more

with his humility, unflappable optimism, basic everyday kindness and sense of gratitude

most known by his daily phrase, “every day is a gift”.

The family wishes to extend it deepest gratitude to those who provided kindness and

excellent care for Tad during his last years, especially the staff at Fox Hill, Judy, Ami and

Daphne. Your actions allowed Tad to experience the dignity and love we all wished him to

have during this chapter.

In lieu of flowers, gifts may be made to:

The Mary Jean and Thaddeus Lindner Scholarship Fund at George Washington University,

or to Jubilee Jobs, 2712 Ontario Road, NW Washington, DC 20009