Walter Karmozyn (1919 - 2015)

This obit of Walter Karmozyn is updated by the community. Edit this biography to contribute to his obituary. Include details such as cemetery, burial, newspaper obituary and grave or marker inscription if available.

NORTH CONWAY, NH - Walter Karmozyn of North Conway, NH, 95, passed away on January 23, 2015 at Genesis Mineral Springs Nursing Home in North Conway. He was born on September 28, 1919 in Manville, RI.
Walter graduated from Woonsocket High School in 1938 and served in the US Army during World War II. After the war, he opened up Walter's Food Mart in Manville. In 1956, he and his wife Florence moved to North Conway, NH and built and operated the Colonial Motel.
Walter was predeceased by his wife, Florence (Whiteside); by his parents Marcin and Mary (Fostyk) Karmozyn; and by his brother, John Karmozyn. He is survived by his daughter, Deborah Karmozyn; his son James Karmozyn and wife Sharon; three grandchildren Theresa, Joseph and John Karmozyn; three great-grandchildren Matthew, Julianna and Ethan Karmozyn; and by his nephews Robert, William, and John Michael Karmozyn of Burrillville.
Visiting hours will be held on Saturday, February 7, 2015 at 9:00 am at the Furber and White Funeral Home in North Conway, with an 11:00 am mass following at Our Lady of the Mountains Church. Internment with his wife Florence will be held at St. Stephen's Ukrainian Orthodox Cemetery in Manville, RI later in the spring.
Published in The Woonsocket Call on Feb. 6, 2015

Walter Karmozyn

Email

Published Date: Wednesday, 28 January 2015 04:30

KarmozynWalter Karmozyn, of North Conway, 95, passed away peacefully with his family by his side on Jan. 23, 2015 at Mineral Springs in North Conway.

Walter first and foremost was a proud family man and a successful businessperson. However, he was also a very proud World War II veteran and was honored to serve his country. He enlisted in the United States Army in January 1941 and then attended Officer Candidate Course, Antiaircraft Artillery School at Camp Davis, N.C. After promotion to Second Lieutenant, he joined the 52nd AAA Brigade at Camp Edwards, Massachusetts in 1943. The Brigade further trained at Camp Campbell, Kentucky and left for England and the European theater right after Christmas 1943. The Brigade spent time in London and Salisbury, England before departing for Omaha Beach in Normandy in July 1944. Captain Karmozyn saw battle in Normandy, Central Europe, the Ardennes, the Rhineland, and Northern France in the next 15 months. He earned a Bronze Star Medal for "outstanding achievement and meritorious service in connection with military operations against the enemy from September 1944 to January 1945 as Brigade Communications Officer". Despite all of this, Walter rarely talked of the battles he saw, only saying that he was proud to support the United States. When he returned to the United States in October 1945, he continued serving his country as a Reserved Commissioned Officer until 1955 when he was honorably discharged. In 1995, Walter and his wife Florence returned to Europe, retracing Walter's army journeys through France and Belgium. And in 2006, Walter was thrilled to have given the oath of office to his grandson Joseph during the University of New Hampshire Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps Commissioning Ceremony, when Joseph was commissioned as a U.S. Army Second Lieutenant.

Walter was a first generation American--his parents came to the United States through Ellis Island from the eastern part of the present Ukraine. They bought a house in Manville in 1914 and established a small family farm and worked in textile and shoe mills. Walter was born on Sept. 28, 1919 in Manville and spoke only Polish until he went to first grade, where he finally learned English. Walter graduated in 1938 from Woonsocket High School in Woonsocket, R.I. He aspired to go to the Rhode Island School of Design to pursue a career in art, but he could not afford to do so. He worked at odd jobs in the area and in the Civilian Conservation Corps.

Walter first discovered Mount Washington Valley when he was a young boy in junior high school. He joined in school trips from Rhode Island where the group stayed at a house at the end of Carter Notch Road in Jackson. He often talked fondly about fishing and enjoying wildlife and fell in love with the area. Later on when Walter was in high school, he and his buddies would drive up to ski in Tuckerman's Ravine and other ski areas just opening in the area. He had a lot of stories about going to church at the former Our Lady of the Mountains Church (now Lutheran Church) and eating at some of the now closed restaurants on Main Street in North Conway. Walter and his friends had very little money and were beginning skiers, but their youthfulness and sense of adventure enabled them to experience the growing ski industry of the Mount Washington Valley.



Walter married Florence Whiteside in January 1943 while in the army. When he returned to the United States after the war, they settled in his hometown of Manville, RI and Walter opened up a small grocery store — Walter's Food Mart. In 1956, Florence and Walter decided to move to North Conway with their toddler daughter and baby son to become a part of the developing Mount Washington Valley. They bought a small cabin court now occupied by the North Conway Village Inn, next to Prompto Oil Change on Route 16 in North Conway. Walter and Florence struggled in the beginning years, but created a small 12-unit motel they named "The North Conway Motel." They became involved in community activities in North Conway over the years.

In 1963, Walter and Florence bought the old Daniel Eastman house on Route 16, which is now the Colonial Motel in North Conway. Walter had 30 feet of the house and a two-story barn on the property torn down, and he then designed and supervised the building of the present motel. Walter and Florence loved the tourist business and shared many stories over the years of families they met, people they remained friends with, and experiences they had in the tourist industry. When Florence passed in 2003, Walter continued to operate the motel on his own until 2004 when he decided to sell the business and retire.

Walter was predeceased by his wife Florence in 2003; by his parents, Marcin and Mary (Fostyk) Karmozyn; and by his brother, John Karmozyn. He is survived by his daughter, Deborah Karmozyn of North Conway; his son, James Karmozyn and wife Sharon, of Charlotte, N.C.; three grandchildren, Theresa Karmozyn, of New York City, Chief Warrant Officer 2 Joseph Karmozyn and his wife, Erin (Murphy), of Fort Belvoir, Va., and John Karmozyn, of Bedminster, N.J.; three great-grandchildren, Matthew, Julianna, and Ethan Karmozyn, of Fort Belvoir, Va.; and three nephews and their families, John Michael, William and Robert Karmozyn, of Rhode Island.

Visiting hours will be held on Saturday, Feb. 7, beginning at 9 a.m. at the Furber and White Funeral Home in North Conway, with an 11 a.m. mass immediately following at Our Lady of the Mountains Catholic Church in North Conway. Internment with his wife Florence will be held at St. Stephen's Ukrainian Orthodox Cemetery in Manville, R.I. later in the spring. Walter wishes to be buried with his parents in the family plot.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Walter's name to a local charity of one's choice. The family would like to thank the wonderful care given to Walter over the past years by the Visiting Nurses of North Conway, the staff and medical personnel at Memorial Hospital in North Conway, and the staff and medical personnel of the Saco River Medical Center in Conway. The family is most appreciative of the gentle and loving care given to Walter in the past year by all the staff and medical personnel at Mineral Springs in North Conway and the Sol Amor Hospice folks at Mineral Springs.

Other Karmozyns

Other Bios