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William Plucinsky Jr. (seated) at what was then Paramus Police Headquarters
William Plucinsky Jr. died Thursday — less than three weeks after his nephew, Michael Stephen Dionisio, passed.
A Mahwah resident who was graduated from William Paterson with a bachelor’s degree, Mr. Plucinsky was a member of the Honor Legion of the State of New Jersey; Garfield High School Hall of Fame; and New Jersey’s Best of the Century for Football.
He is survived by his wife, Constance, a longtime area teacher; daughter Cary Plucinsky; son-in-law Ronald Bodnar of Mahwah; brother Robert and sister-in-law Clara; nephew Robert Kyle and niece Cathy Macher; and sisters-in-law Lee Goralski of Massachusetts and Elaine Goralski of Louisiana. His nephew was living in Louisiana, where he died after battling a two-year illness follwing an injury in 2009.
Although he was widely known for his work with delinquents, as well as his generous donations to charitable causes, Mr. Plucinsky cemented his place in history as one of the 101st Airborne Division’s last true “Screaming Eagles.”
The highly decorated U.S. Army unit made its name in the June 6, 1944 D-Day landings in Normandy, France, during World War II, and by liberating Holland during the “Battle of the Bulge.” Korea essentially was the last time the unit used airplanes to deliver troops, moving to helicopters during the Vietnam War.
Visiting hours are from 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. Monday at Oakland Memorial Home, 330 Valley Road, Oakland, with the private cremation to follow.
Memorial donations are requested in lieu of flowers to the Wounded Warrior Project, PO Box 758516, Topeka, KS 66675-8516, or to the United States Veterans Hospice Foundation, PO Box 96170, Washington, DC 20090-6170.
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