1917
Ted
2017
Ted Boyd
February 22, 1917 — January 28, 2017
Ted Boyd, 99, of Downingtown, PA, passed away at Pocopson Nursing Home January 28, 2017 just three weeks shy of his 100th birthday.
Ted was born in Janisow, Poland on February 22, 1917. His father died when he was 2 yrs. old, leaving his mother to care for him and his 5 siblings (4 brothers and one sister), of which he was the youngest and only surviving member. There was not enough food for the family so Ted had to leave home at a very young age to work on a farm in return for his meals.
Ted was 22 yrs. old and a radio operator in the Polish army when Germany attacked Poland in 1939 during the start of WWII. He escaped from Poland with the help of the Polish underground and landed in the United Kingdom in 1941. He was part of a Polish Unit stationed in Scotland, when he met his wife Helen McInally at a dance for servicemen/women and on January 22nd,1942 they were married. In 1951 his father's brother, Felix Giermanski, sponsored him to immigrate to the United States. That same year Ted changed his last name from Giermanski to Boyd (a Dundee United football player). It was easier to migrate to America if you had an English-speaking name. In 1952 his family was reunited when he was able to bring his wife Helen and two sons, Michael and John, to the USA from Scotland. They lived in Mahoningtown,PA, where Ted had been staying at his cousin Sonny's farmhouse. Ted worked for US Steel and then at several lumber companies until he was injured on the job.
He lived a simple life, early to rise and early to bed and liked to keep busy
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always tinkering with something. He was content to be working outside anytime he could. He attributed his longevity to "an apple a day" but his family knows it was his feistiness and will to survive from an early age that kept him going. Ted loved gardening (he made a mean brandy using fresh raspberries he grew), woodworking and was a great dancer. Ted and Helen (deceased 2004) were happily married for 62 yrs.
Ted is survived by his two sons and daughters-in-law, Mike & Marianne Boyd of Glenmoore, PA and John & Ann Boyd of Forked River, NJ., 5 grandchildren: Diana Boyd, Michelle Boyd Schroeder, Michael, John Jr. & Steven Boyd, and 8 great-grandchildren (who called him "Poppy Ted"): Michael, Brett, Trevor, Zach, Mitchell, Peyton, Jackson & Elizabeth, and other family and friends.
Relatives and friends are invited to his Viewing Sunday 2:00-4:00 PM and Monday 9:00-10:30 AM at the Donohue Funeral Home, 43 W. Lancaster Ave, Downingtown, PA, 610-269-3080, followed by his Funeral Mass 11:00 AM at St Joseph's Church, 460 Manor Ave, Downingtown, PA. Interment St. Joseph Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions are requested to St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital, PO Box 50, Memphis, TN 38101-9929.
Online condolences at www.donohuefuneralhome.com.
Ted was born in Janisow, Poland on February 22, 1917. His father died when he was 2 yrs. old, leaving his mother to care for him and his 5 siblings (4 brothers and one sister), of which he was the youngest and only surviving member. There was not enough food for the family so Ted had to leave home at a very young age to work on a farm in return for his meals.
Ted was 22 yrs. old and a radio operator in the Polish army when Germany attacked Poland in 1939 during the start of WWII. He escaped from Poland with the help of the Polish underground and landed in the United Kingdom in 1941. He was part of a Polish Unit stationed in Scotland, when he met his wife Helen McInally at a dance for servicemen/women and on January 22nd,1942 they were married. In 1951 his father's brother, Felix Giermanski, sponsored him to immigrate to the United States. That same year Ted changed his last name from Giermanski to Boyd (a Dundee United football player). It was easier to migrate to America if you had an English-speaking name. In 1952 his family was reunited when he was able to bring his wife Helen and two sons, Michael and John, to the USA from Scotland. They lived in Mahoningtown,PA, where Ted had been staying at his cousin Sonny's farmhouse. Ted worked for US Steel and then at several lumber companies until he was injured on the job.
He lived a simple life, early to rise and early to bed and liked to keep busy
-
always tinkering with something. He was content to be working outside anytime he could. He attributed his longevity to "an apple a day" but his family knows it was his feistiness and will to survive from an early age that kept him going. Ted loved gardening (he made a mean brandy using fresh raspberries he grew), woodworking and was a great dancer. Ted and Helen (deceased 2004) were happily married for 62 yrs.
Ted is survived by his two sons and daughters-in-law, Mike & Marianne Boyd of Glenmoore, PA and John & Ann Boyd of Forked River, NJ., 5 grandchildren: Diana Boyd, Michelle Boyd Schroeder, Michael, John Jr. & Steven Boyd, and 8 great-grandchildren (who called him "Poppy Ted"): Michael, Brett, Trevor, Zach, Mitchell, Peyton, Jackson & Elizabeth, and other family and friends.
Relatives and friends are invited to his Viewing Sunday 2:00-4:00 PM and Monday 9:00-10:30 AM at the Donohue Funeral Home, 43 W. Lancaster Ave, Downingtown, PA, 610-269-3080, followed by his Funeral Mass 11:00 AM at St Joseph's Church, 460 Manor Ave, Downingtown, PA. Interment St. Joseph Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions are requested to St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital, PO Box 50, Memphis, TN 38101-9929.
Online condolences at www.donohuefuneralhome.com.
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Ted Boyd, please visit our flower store.
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