Anthony John Stefanac passed into eternal rest on Sunday, Sept. 10, 2017, in West Palm Beach, Fla, after a brief illness. Anthony was privileged to celebrate his 100th birthday on Dec. 24, 2016, a goal which was fêted in grand style in Cazenovia on Labor Day 2016, with family members through four generations! He was honored again at his home in West Palm Beach on his actual Dec. 24th birthday.
Anthony was born in Stefanci, Yugoslavia (now Croatia) and came to the United States at the age of 6. After spending much of his youth in Albany and Cazenovia in Upstate New York, the family eventually settled in New York City. It was there that he met his wife of 56 years, Mary Cwelich, and they married in 1938. Mary passed away in 1994.
Anthony started his career with the New York City Transit Authority in 1938 and worked his way up to assistant superintendent of operations and chief of operations in the Command Center at 370 Jay St., Brooklyn. During his years with the NYCYA, Anthony lived with his wife and children in Yonkers, N.Y.
After retiring from NYCTA in 1975, Anthony and Mary moved to Alexandria, Va, where he lived for 30 years. He became the first general superintendent of rail for the Washington, D.C. Metro. He guided the early stages of planning, development and construction of the rail system that now services not only the District of Columbia, but parts of Maryland and Virginia as well.
Upon his retirement from the Washington Metro, he continued to live in Alexandria, before moving permanently to West Palm Beach. Anthony filled his retirement years by becoming an avid golfer and gardener, traveling through Europe and by camping and fishing, activities he took up with his wife of five years, Margaret, whom he married in 2012. Anthony was very proud of his family heritage and visited his birth home in Stefanci several times with family members. Anthony was a proud veteran of World War II, having served in the United States Army. He was a member of the Engineering Auxiliary Brigade assigned to the European Theater and saw action on Omaha Beach shortly after the D-Day invasion.
Anthony is predeceased by his first wife, Mary, and by his son, John, who passed away in 2013 at the age of 69. He is survived by his wife, Margaret, of West Palm Beach, Fla; daughters Karen Swanson and Barbara Gutzler of Wappingers Falls, N.Y.; grandson Christopher Stefanac and his wife Andrea, of Richmond, Va. He also leaves behind Chris and Andrea’s Bernese Mountain Dog, Flyer, who was Anthony’s favorite “grand-dog.”
A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 5, at St. James Church in Cazenovia. The family will receive visitors at the church that same day, from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. Burial at St. James Cemetery will follow immediately after the mass. In lieu of flowers, donations in Anthony’s memory may be made to the Maryknoll Sisters, Box 311, Maryknoll, New York 10545. Please write on the memo line: “In memory of Anthony Stefanac.”