Frederick J. "Al" Daszkiewicz

Frederick J. ("Al") Daszkiewicz died peacefully on January 21 after a brief illness. He joined his son Mark, who died in 1957.

Al was a man defined by his kindness and staunch support of his family. He lived most of his life in East Brunswick, New Jersey in a house he and his wife built in 1955. He spent most of each summer on Cape Cod. He moved west to Seattle in 2018 to be closer to family once again.

Al graduated from South River High School in 1947 where he was a star pitcher on the baseball team. He chased his baseball dream to Florida trying out for the big leagues. Al returned to New Jersey and to his future wife, Joan O'Grady, who he met in 1947. They married in 1951.

Al worked hard throughout his life, initially in his brother's business (Chet's Liquor Store). After that business was sold he worked in warehouses until he learned the furniture repair trade. By the late 1970s he had his own business, Fred's Furniture Repair. He kept working into his early 80's, instilling the value of doing any form of honest work to provide for the family.

Al truly was a family man. His children remember the songs he sang them to sleep by, the years of snuggling on his lap, his passion for saving quarters, and the many skills they learned working on projects at his side. His grandchildren remember playing catch and riding bikes with him on Cape Cod, traveling with them anywhere, and his love of $2 bills. He always could be counted on to help move into a new apartment, drive an elderly relative home, or assist with home projects. His yard sale finds furnished significant portions of our homes. No one packed a car more efficiently than Al. He taught his children to paint rooms, clean gutters, rewire lamps, tend gardens, tighten chairs and shoo away skunks living under porches. When his children got into messes he wordlessly stepped in to help fix things, using great discretion in how much information he shared with Joan. Well into their adulthood he would hide money each time he visited, and continued the tradition of "green handshakes" with his grandchildren. He was resourceful and cool in a crisis, even when it involved a dart accidentally thrown into a hot water pipe on Thanksgiving.

Al and Joan were incredibly great role models for how to master the "empty nest." In addition to regular weekend adventures they traveled extensively in North America and around much of the world. Any mode of transportation was worth a try: balloons, gliders, cruise ships (including the QE 2), planes, trains, camper vans and automobiles. Their favorite trips included children or grandchildren, and they managed to attend almost all the weddings, graduations and major events in each grandchild's life. They loved reminiscing about their adventures over dinner each night.

Al rarely sat still, except to watch Jeopardy or a ballgame. If he wasn't in the basement repairing a piece of furniture he was mowing the lawn, tending the garden, organizing his workbench, shoveling snow or taking out the trash. In his 70s and 80s he was a regular volunteer for Interfaith, driving seniors to medical appointments throughout central New Jersey.

Al is deeply missed by Joan O'Grady Daszkiewicz, his wife of 68 years, his children Linda (Bob), Paul (Mimi) and Rosemary (Guy), his grandchildren Kyle, Mary (Kevin), Sarah (Noble), Colleen, Lee and Emma, and his great grandson Maddox.

A Memorial Mass and Celebration of his Life will be held on

May 2, 2020 at 10 am the Bayview in Seattle, WA,

with a reception to follow.

Should you choose, please direct any donations to

Interfaith Network of Care,

62 S. Main Street, Milltown, NJ, 08850.

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