CHESTER GWOZDZ—STILL GOING STRONG AT 88
Chester Gwozdz was born in Roseburg, Ohio on September 14, 1918. His parents, Simon and Mary were from a town near the Ukraine border in Poland. They immigrated through Stanton Island and then traveled to Rossford. Chester’s dad worked for the Edward Ford Plate Glass Company.
Chester attended grades 1-8 at Walnut Elementary and graduated from Rossford High School in 1936. After high school he went to Detroit to work for Chrysler.
Chester brought in a news clipping of a summer day from 1930 when he competed in Bowling Green, Ohio at a Track & Field Day put on by the WPA (Workers Progress Association).
Chester was 12 years old and the events he participated in included volleyball, softball, 50 & 100 yard dash, football and softball throw.
The newspaper clipping shows a picture of Chester’s volleyball team. Chester said, “In those days, we competed all day. We won the volleyball tournament, the fast pitch softball tournament and I placed in several of the track & field events. I wish there would have been a Little League World Series in those days as we had a great team.”
Chester remembers well his time at Chrysler. He pitched for the Chrysler fast-pitch softball team and at one time they had a record of 33 straight wins.
He was drafted into the Army in 1941 and served in the medical branch from June of 1941 until June of 1945. He did his basics at Virginia Beach, and toured Africa and Italy where he served near Florence and achieved the rank of Sergeant. Most of his work was in the E-Vac hospitals. He saw Mt. Abby, Mt. Casino and the leaning Tower of Piza. He said, “You know that S.O.B. really does lean!”
After the war, Chester went back to Rossberg, Ohio to work at a chemical factory. When the work ran out in 1948, he traveled to Fort Wayne and worked at a rubber factory until 1959. He then worked at Pillsbury on State Street until retiring in 1981.
Chester has been a member at American Legion Post 241 for 30 years and has been doing charity work around the area for the past 23 years. One of his projects is taking clothes to the orphan’s home outside of Knightstown, Indiana. He also belongs to VFW 1421, Eagles 248, and the Southwest Conservation Club.
Chester married his wife Crystal in 1951. They have three boys, Kevin, David and Samuel.
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