Obituary of John C. Rucigay

John C. Rucigay, 89, of Clifton Park, passed away on Saturday, November 1, 2014. John had a life long interest in aviation. He was a B-24 pilot during WWII and after the war became an Aeronautical Engineer. He worked for Piasecki Helicopter Corporation before joining General Electric, where he retired after 29 years. During his time at GE, he was instrumental in preserving historical photographs for the Hall of History, and was active in the GE Elfun Society. He was an accomplished sailplane pilot and accordion player, with interests in Barbershop Quartet singing, skiing and softball. He spent time as a volunteer at the Okte Elementary School and the Empire State Air Museum. He was also a member of the Colonie Elks, the Air Force 464th Bomb Group and the Escape & Evasion Society. He is survived by his wife Dorothy Rucigay, daughters Diane (Michael) Mitrione, and Lori (Tom) Ordon, son Richard (Tammy) Rucigay, and sister-in-law Lee Rucigay. He is also survived by grandsons Kyle and Jason Mitrione and several nieces and nephews. He was pre-deceased by his brother Emil Rucigay. A service with military honors will be held on Friday, November 7, 2014, at 12 Noon at the Saratoga National Cemetery, 200 Duell Rd., Schuylerville. In lieu of flowers, contributions in John Rucigay’s memory may be made to the Parkinson's Disease Foundation, 1359 Broadway, Suite 1509, New York, NY 10018, or by going to http://support.pdf.org/.