Walter S Pietras

SHIP BOTTOM, NJ

Walter “Walt” Pietras peacefully passed into Gods hands at his home in Ship Bottom, NJ on Friday, June 2 at the age of 83 with his loving family and friends by his side.

Walt was born on August 6, 1939 in Bondsville, MA to Wladyslaw E. and Mary Pietras. He moved to New Jersey at a young age and attended schools in Lawrence then graduated from Hopewell Valley Central High School. Walt joined the United States Air Guard 108th Tactical Fighter Wing as a weapons technician at the age of 18 in February 1957. He was stationed at McGuire Air Force Base before he retired in 1987 as a Master Sargent. Walt went on to work at the Naval Air Propulsion Test Center in Ewing, NJ until it’s closure in 1997.

After his return from a tour in France in 1962, he met Phyllis who would become his wife in December of 1964. They settled in Pennington, NJ and raised their boys until their move to Ship Bottom, NJ in 2019 to fulfill Walt’s love for boating, fishing and crabbing. Walt had many passions in life—coin collecting and hunting were two favorites. Nothing made him more proud than the achievements of his two sons, but his grandchildren were the stars of his heart.

Walt was known for his ability to fix almost anything due to his patient mind and gentle hands— skills he passed onto his sons. Walt also had quite the sense of humor. Family, friends and coworkers were often recipients of his sarcasm, humor and practical jokes. Walt always had a story to tell about his time in the military, growing up, jokes he pulled with or on his coworkers or how many crabs he caught that week. Walt, and his charismatic smile will be greatly missed by all who knew him.

Walt is survived by his wife of 59 years, Phyllis; his children Jeffrey and Monica Pietras and Michael and Katherine Pietras and his grandchildren Kylie, Vaughn, Kaitlin and Hannah; his brother-in-law Raymond and Monica Hubler and his many nieces, nephews and cousins. He is preceded in death by his parents, his in-laws and his sisters Ann M. And Stanley Wilk and Alice and Edward Laird.

The viewing will be held Thursday June 8th from 6-8pm at the Wilson-Apple Funeral Home, 2560 Pennington Road, Pennington. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Friday June 9th 11:00 am at St. James RC Church, 115 East Delaware Ave., Pennington with visitation from 10:00am until time of Mass. The interment will be private. 

In lieu of flowers, please send a donation in Walt’s name to your favorite charity. Condolences are welcome at www.wilsonapple.com.