Thaddeus “Ted” Kuczewski, born with his twin brother, Zdzislev, in Warsaw, Poland, on July 15, 1916, he joined the Polish Army in 1936. He was an officer with the Polish Army, 2nd Corps, under the British command of General Anders until 1945. During this period he had been captured twice by the Nazis and was fortunate enough to survive both captures. He took part in the Warsaw Uprising, later traveling to Italy towards the end of the war. Before the end of the war, his twin brother had been beaten to death and his other brother Leonard was Missing in Action. While in Italy, he was wounded and treated by a military nurse, Martha Ratajczk. The pair wed in October 1946, in Bari, Italy. Shortly after, he and his wife moved to London as part of the Allied Relocation. There they had a son George and daughter Eva. In January 1951, the family traveled aboard the Queen Mary II to New York, later moving to Chicago. Speaking little English and knowing no one, he quickly found a job as a foreman at Hart, Schaffner and Marx. Shortly thereafter, he and his wife opened a travel agency & immigration service (Central Travel, on Archer Ave.), which they ran for 25 years, then selling their business and retiring. In 1965, tragedy struck the family when their only son died from Duchene’s Muscular Dystrophy. From 1980 to 2005, he and his wife lived in Indian Head Park, IL, while spending winters in St. Petersburg, FL. In May 2005, the two moved to the Devonshire in Lisle where Ted passed away on October 14, 2005, from heart disease. Mr. Kuczewski is survived by his wife Martha; daughter Eva Heakin and her husband Kevin; grandson Marc Fawcett and granddaughter Andrea Fawcett. The visitation will be on Monday, October 17, from 3 to 9 p.m., at Hallowell & James Funeral Home, 1025 W. 55th St., Countryside. Mass at St. John of the Cross Church, Western Springs, IL, Tuesday, October 18, 11:15 a.m. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to the Muscular Dystrophy Association, 3300 E. Sunrise Dr., Tucson, AZ 85718, or Tourette’s Syndrome, 42-40 Bell Blvd., Bayside, NY 11361, or to the Alzheimer’s Association, 225 N. Michigan Ave., Fl. 17, Chicago, IL 60601. Funeral home 708-352-6500 .
