Richard J. Kowalski's Obituary
Richard John Kowalski died during the night of October 22-23 at the Veterans' Hospital in Tampa, Fla. He was a son of Marion John and Sara June (Higbee) Kowalski, born June 21, 1947, at Columbus, Ohio.
Rick attended New Albany High School and was a US Air Force veteran of Viet Nam. After the Air Force, he graduated from Ohio State University with an accounting degree in 1974 and later became a CPA, auditing for a number of departments in the US Government—in Ohio, the US Virgin Islands, Virginia, as well as traveling assignments. He retired from the Department of the Navy and moved to Lakeland, Fla., in 1999. There he enjoyed meeting other veterans at the VFW and golfing, cooking, history, gardening, and electronics. He was passionate about Ohio State football and not afraid of using a sewing machine when needed.
Rick married Linda Seum and had one son, Richard, who died in February 2021 in Phoenix. Rick later married Linda (Dickley) Miller who died in 1996 in Chesapeake, Va., and Judith Green.
He was preceded in death by his youngest brother, John, in 2009, and is survived by three siblings, Mike of Sunnyvale, Calif., Marian of Watertown, Mass., and June of Lakeland, Fla.; and nephews and niece, Michael, Chris and Steve Kowalski, and Amy (Kowalski) Walker; grandnieces and grandnephews, Emily Kowalski, Kayna Walker, Kiara Walker, Hayden Kowalski, and Kyle Kowalski.
Rick asked to be buried at the Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell, Florida. There will be a brief service there at 11am on Thursday, 17 November, followed by a friendly gathering at the Lakeland VFW Post 8002, at 9398 US Hwy 98 N. Friends and family are respectfully invited to attend.
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