John Richard Bednarski, 86, of Marcellus, died July 12, 2023, at St. Camillus nursing home.
Born Sept. 26, 1936, John graduated from Marcellus High School in 1954 where he played on the football, basketball and baseball teams. He attended LeMoyne College, graduating in 1958 with a degree in history and political science. He earned a masters’ degree in education in 1960 from Syracuse University. John then began a teaching career, working first for a year at Messina High School in Messina, N.Y., and then for two years at Eastridge High School in Rochester, N.Y. It was in Rochester that he met his future wife, Geraldine Frederico. In 1963 they married and the couple moved to Marcellus where John and Geraldine began raising a family and John began teaching high school social studies at his alma mater, retiring in 1998.
In 1969, John was appointed to the Marcellus Town Council, and then was elected in 1971 to a two-year term. He was then elected Town Supervisor in 1974, serving in that position until 1990.
In his retirement, John served on the board of the LeMoyne College Gold Wave and the board of directors of Tuscarora Golf Club. He also spent time travelling with his wife. He spent time with friends and spent countless hours babysitting his five grandchildren as well as devoting his time to his true passion, the game of golf.
John was first introduced to the game as a youngster by his uncles, the owners of Tuscarora Golf Club in Marcellus. He worked on the course’s grounds crew as a teenager and quickly took to the sport. John played on the golf team at LeMoyne, earning his way to the 1956 NCAA National Championship Tournament at the Scarlet and Gray Course at Ohio State University. He won the Syracuse District Golf Association Championship in 1967, 1968 and 1974 and he won the Herald Amateur in 1969. He won 14 club championships at Tuscarora, the first in 1954 and the last in 1996, taking the crown in five consecutive decades. He won the Senior Club Championship at Tuscarora twice. He won numerous Member Guest tournaments at Tuscarora and several other club events, as well as member guest tournaments at several other clubs. He qualified for and played in the U.S. Senior Men’s Amateur Championship at Prairie Dunes, Kansas, in 1992 and in 1993 he won the Syracuse District Golf Association Senior Stroke Play Championship.
In 2001 John was inducted into the LeMoyne College Athletic Hall of Fame and in 2008 he was inducted into the Syracuse District Golf Association Hall of Fame, having served many years on its board of directors, including as the district’s president in 1990 and 1991. He was named the district’s Golfer of the Year in 1986.
John was extremely proud of his Polish ancestry and was a longtime member of the Syracuse Polish Heritage Club, serving as its president. He was a lifetime communicant of St. Francis Xavier Church in Marcellus where he served as a lector.
John is survived by his wife of 60 years, Geraldine, his sons Chris Bednarski (Maria), Mark Bednarski (Erin) and his daughter Maryellen Sullivan (Tim) as well as grandchildren Kyra Pesci (Dan), Abby, Adam, Mariana and Peter and his sister, Carol Collins.
Calling hours will be held at Ryan Funeral Home, 44 East Main St., in Marcellus from 4-7 p.m. on Tuesday, July 18 and a Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Wednesday, July 19 at St. Francis Xavier Church. Burial will be private.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Jim and Mary Entwistle Scholarship Fund c/o Tuscarora Golf Club, 2901 Howlett Hill Road, Marcellus NY 13108 or MAVES, P.O. Box 203, Marcellus, NY 13108.
