George Edmund Koleszar

George Edmund Koleszar, age 77, of Manassas Virginia, died on 19 March, 2019 after a long battle with multiple cancers.

He is survived by his loving wife of 55 years, Irene Marie (Hauck) Koleszar (a.k.a. The Ladybug Lady), and four children, Loretta and Michael (son-in-law) Rossomondo of Montclair, Virginia, John Koleszar of Williamsburg, Virginia, Jean Koleszar of Lake Ridge, Virginia, and Mary Ellen Koleszar of Floyd, Virginia, a brother Robert Koleszar and Dr. Elizabeth Pallan (sister-in-law) of Eldersburg, Maryland, and three grandchildren, Justine, Jack, and Joseph. He was preceded in death by his parents and a brother, Thomas Koleszar, an Army combat veteran of Vietnam, and his wife Jenny.

George loved and cherished his family. His wife Irene and he loved the military life, and enjoyed that it afforded the opportunity to live overseas. They gathered friends from all over and still keep in touch to this day. The military life was not easy but with a supportive family it was truly fun. Family dinners were nightly, and game nights and family vacations were a must. Traveling was one of George’s passions and he and Irene toured Germany (stationed there), and also went beyond its borders to Switzerland, France, Holland, Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales, and Luxembourg, The family went on a car trip nearly every Sunday while in Germany visiting all the historical Cathedrals, museums, and hiking the Alps. Stateside, he managed to visit all 50 states, primarily due to work and a few via vacation. Along the way he developed a passion for fine dining and good wines, especially French. He believed in higher education and offered the opportunity to all his kids and set up college savings accounts for his three grandchildren. Humor and laughing were a huge part of his life. Except for some of his career photographs, it’s hard to find a picture without a warming smile or obvious laughter. George was also a philanthropist, helping many in tough financial spots and also donating monthly to various charities. He loved all of nature, especially animals with a particular fondness for birds. He lived his life devoted to his God, his family, helping those in need, and his country.

Dr. Koleszar, the son of the late George Emil Koleszar and Alice Angela (Nugent) Koleszar, was born in Newark, New Jersey, and grew up in Bloomfield, New Jersey. He attended St Benedict’s Preparatory School in Newark, and graduated from the New Jersey Institute of Technology with a BS degree in electrical engineering. He went on later to earn his MS degree from the University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, and a PhD degree from the Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, also in electrical engineering.

Dr. Koleszar served in the United States Air Force for 20 years as a research and development engineer, a technical intelligence officer, a teacher, speech writer, and staff officer retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel. His assignments included tours at the National Security Agency, Fort Meade Maryland where he helped design and develop electronic intercept equipment; the European Electronic Intelligence Center in Wiesbaden, Germany where he was Chief of Signals Analysis where his team analyzed electronic intercepts from air, land and sea platforms; Keesler Technical Training Center at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi Mississippi where he taught communications and information theory subjects, was the USAF Coordinator of the Telecommunications Management Graduate Degree Program, and was also an Adjunct Professor at the University of Southern Mississippi; the Defense Communications Agency in Arlington, Virginia where he was Chief of the Systems Integration Office and worked on improving communications and command and control systems for U.S. Strategic and Theater Nuclear Forces; and the Organization of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the Pentagon where he worked on improving the interoperability of tactical communications systems, and helped develop policy for employment of U.S. electronic warfare and C3 countermeasures and cyber warfare systems. Lt Col Koleszar’s military decorations include the Defense Meritorious Service Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster (two awards), the Meritorious Service Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster (two awards), the Joint Service Commendation Medal, and the National Defense Service Medal.

After deciding not to opt for a promotion to Colonel and continue his Air Force career, he retired from the Air Force in 1983. He continued his service at the Institute for Defense Analyses (IDA), Alexandria Virginia, a not-for-profit Federally Funded Research and Development Center, where he served as a Research Staff Member, Assistant Director, and Director of the System Evaluation Division. He retired from IDA in 2008 for medical reasons. At IDA, Dr. Koleszar directed a number of important national security studies covering a plethora of system and program issues including electronic warfare, night vision capability for Special Operations Forces, command, control and communications systems, tactical aircraft systems, force structure cost-effectiveness, and various weapon and missile systems, but he was perhaps best known for his work on stealth (low observables) and long-range aircraft systems like the B-2, B-1B and B-52 where he led numerous studies and testified several times before Congressional Defense Subcommittees. While at IDA, Dr. Koleszar authored or co-authored over 40 classified papers and reports. He also graduated from the National and International Security Management Course for Senior Executives at Harvard University. In 1992, he received the IDA award for outstanding research.

During his career, Dr. Koleszar received awards for his research and teaching, and was a member of a number of numerous professional organizations including the Sigma Xi, the Scientific Research Honor Society, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (Life Member), Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association, American Association for the Advancement of Science, Military Officers Association of America, and Air Force Association, to name a few.

The latter part of George’s life was difficult. He battled bladder cancer, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, myelodysplastic syndrome, and an aggressive, invasive squamous cell carcinoma. He underwent numerous surgeries, chemotherapy infusions, radiation therapy, weekly drug injections, and transfusions for over a decade. Compounding the cancers, George had to endure extremely painful post herpetic neuralgia following a bout of adult chicken pox, and also suffered compression fractures of four vertebrae. The last few weeks of his life, he was in the hospital having contracted MRSA. He endured an array of tests resulting in another, inadvertently-broken vertebra. The bacteremia could not be resolved and started to affect his well-being. But he never complained, and instead tried to help other cancer patients with advice and guidance based on his own experiences. Doctors and nurses who treated George called him a survivor, a trooper, a fighter, and an extraordinary patient.

Dr. Koleszar wrote a paper guiding other cancer patients on how to deal with their cancer. It is not published with his name but is given out by the doctors and nurses to their patients at the Virginia Cancer Specialists institution.

George was a giving person and always gave back to the Church, people in need, and many charitable organizations. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Disabled American Veterans at https://www.dav.org.

The family will receive friends Sunday, March 24, 2019 from 2-4 p.m. and 7-9 p.m. at Miller Funeral Home, 3200 Golansky Blvd., Woodbridge, VA 22192. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held Monday, March 25, 2019 at 11 a.m. at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, 12975 Purcell Rd, Manassas, VA 20110. Interment will be held at Arlington National Cemetery at a later date.