Jerry Jaroslav Krupa

Jerry Jaroslav Krupa, age 85, of Maitland, Florida, passed away on Sunday, August 7, 2022.

Jerry was born in Valaska Bela, Slovakia, on February 5, 1937, and had 5 brothers and sisters. He lived a long and interesting life, frequently telling stories of his family and their move from the country to the capital, Bratislava, their experiences during World War II, his escape from Communism, and his new life in the United States.

Jerry was a chemist by profession, but his real passion was serving as a freedom fighter. He attended and was vocal in underground anti-Communist meetings, and dreamed of escaping the Communist regime. He married his lovely wife, Maria Mestankova, on July 6, 1963, and their son, Roman, was born October 4, 1964. Shortly after he made the ultimate sacrifice: he left on a quest for freedom and a better life for his family, living by his motto, "No Risk, No Gain". His original plan to head for Germany fell through and he ended up at a political refugee camp in Italy for 6 months, until the International Rescue Committee offered him a chance to go to America. For a short while he lived in New York City and then settled in New Jersey. It wasn't until 3.5 years later, on July 7, 1968, was he reunited with his wife and son. Their daughter, Diana, was born 10 years later on March 24, 1978.

After arriving in the U.S., Jerry participated in several Slovak cultural, social and political organizations in New York City. The Slovak League of America was the first organization he became a member of and was elected as Secretary of the New York branch. He established a newspaper, Slobodna Tribuna (Freedom Tribune), for which he worked as its Chief Editor. In 1970, the Slovak World Congress was established and he was one of its original members. He twice served as President of the Slovak-American Cultural Center, and spent a lot of time working towards promoting Slovak culture in the NYC area and towards gaining political independence for Slovakia. In the early 1990's, he led the political committee of the Slovak World Congress and drafted a document entitled, "Concrete Steps to an Independent Slovakia." Its message was that for a nation to be fully productive, it must be independent. This document served as a template for Slovakia's presidential platform. Aside from the end of Communism in 1989, his prayers were answered on January 1, 1993, when Slovakia became an independent nation.

Jerry spent 25 years in New Jersey working as a chemist for Unilever Research and earned 6 patents that are registered in the U.S., Canada, Great Britain and India. He went back to school earning degrees in business and chemistry, and he and Maria owned and operated a video store for several years. Jerry was also a published author of 4 books in Slovak: Laska a Myslienky (Love and Thoughts), Cesta k Uspechu (Road to Success), Vyber z Poezie a Prozy (Selection of Poetry and Novels), and Rastislavov Otcenas (Rastislav's Prayers).

He and his family lived many years in Rockaway, NJ, before he retired, after which he and Maria moved to Florida in 1999, first to Cocoa Beach and then settled in Maitland. Jerry served as President and Manager of a Slovak community in Winter Park called Slovak Garden, where he also edited their Golden Jubilee Book, 50th Anniversary of the Slovak Garden, Inc.

They spent time traveling to new places and Slovakia, and enjoyed visits with their son and granddaughters on the west coast, and their daughter's family in NJ. In between visits, they spent Sundays Skyping with their children and grandchildren.

Jerry will be remembered for many things: his love for freedom and his beloved Slovakia, his bravery, his leadership, his writing, his powerful speeches, his love for culture, art and beautiful music, his love for life and laughter, his amazing encyclopedia-like mind, his Catholic faith, but most of all the love he had for his family, and of course, for his wife's cooking and baking.

He is preceded in death by his parents, Jozef Krupa and Vilma Krupova, and siblings Andrej, Jozef, Vincent, and Helena.

Jerry is survived by his loving wife, Maria Krupa, son, Dr. Roman Krupa, daughter, Diana B. S. Swiderski, son-in-law, Joseph J. Swiderski, grandchildren, Sofia A. Tiberio-Krupa, Chiara J. Tiberio-Krupa, Adriana T. Swiderski, Sienna T. Swiderski, and sister, Hana Hafnerova.

Visitation is Wednesday, August 17, 2022 from 1:30 pm to 2:00 pm with funeral service starting at 2:00 pm at Newcomer Cremations, Funerals & Receptions (Winter Park Chapel), 3806 Howell Branch Rd, Winter Park, Florida 32792.

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