Adolph "Tony" Chihak

Adolph “Tony” Chihak, 92,  of Stewartville, MN passed away on Friday  (September 29, 2023) of natural causes at his home.  

 Adolph Anthony Chihak was born on May 17, 1931 in Lourdes, Iowa to Adolph and Clare (Marion) Chihak. He grew up on the family farm, attended country school at Lourdes through 10th grade and graduated from Immaculate Conception HS in Elma, Iowa in 1949. He enlisted into the US Navy serving 4 years, including duty overseas as one of the 1st modern day combat helicopter crews in the Korean Conflict . He received numerous decorations and combat medals and received the ranking of 3rd class Petty Officer and following his discharge returned to Iowa. On May 7, 1956,  Carol Robinson and Tony Chihak were united in marriage in Cresco, Iowa.  The couple lived in Cresco until moving to Granada Hills, CA, before moving to Stewartville in 1962 where they raised their family and have continued to make their home. Tony was employed as a mechanic both at Gopher Aviation at the Rochester Airport and Sears Automotive Store in Rochester. He then was employed with Mayo Clinic Rochester Methodist Hospital as an assistant director of housekeeping for over 18 years until his retirement in 1986. Carol was a homemaker and was employed as a teller and then auditor at First National Bank and also as a bookkeeper with First American Insurance both of Stewartville. Mrs. Chihak died on April 30, 2022. Tony was a member of St. Bernard Catholic Church for 63 years and was active with its men's club activities. He was a longtime member of the Stewartville American Legion Post 164 and the Rochester Korean War Veterans Club.  Tony had a deep strong faith in God, enjoyed visiting with family and friends and was a Minnesota Twins fan. He always put others in front of himself and his greatest joy came from spending time with family and attending his grandchildren’s events.  

Tony is survived by 1 daughter and 3 sons -  Veryl (Laurie) Chihak  and Jeff (Nancy) Chihak both of Plymouth, MN: Allan (Peggy) Chihak  and Rachelle (Jeff) Campion of Stewartville; 11 grandchildren -  Nick, Pam, Nichol, Lacie, Jenny,Nate, acob, Sam, Mandy, Katie and Leah;  33 great grandchildren; 1 brother - Jim(Shirley) Chihak of Rochester, MN; 1 sister - Carol (Jan) Quarberg of Nelson, WI and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by Carol, his wife of 66 years, his parents, and 3 sisters  - Marion Shannon, Catherine Nelson, Joanne Meeks.                .

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Saturday (October 14, 2023 ) at 11:00 AM at St. Bernard’s Catholic Church in Stewartville, MN with Rev. Kevin Connolly officiating.  Visitation will be from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM at St. Bernards on Saturday morning.  Burial will take place at St. Bernard’s Cemetery in Stewartville with military graveside honors by the Stewartville American Legion. Arrangements are with Griffin-Gray Funeral Home in Stewartville. Condolences and memories of Tony are welcome at www.griffin-gray.com

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