Glinsky

Stephen P. Glinsky Jr., passed away peacefully in the early hours of Monday, July 7, 2025, at his home in Slippery Rock.

He was born as the first child of six to Mary Catherine Krochmal Glinsky and Stephen Paul Glinsky Sr. on April 2, 1933, in Akron, Ohio.

Brought up in a devout Catholic home, he enrolled in the Maryknoll Seminary in Glenn Ellyn, Ill., at the age of 18 and trained afterward in the Maryknoll Novitiate.

However, in 1956 he enlisted in the intelligence branch of the U.S. Air Force and spent four years of his service in Germany. There, he not only discovered his love for the German language and culture but also met his first wife, Karin, with whom he later had six children.

After his graduate German studies and doctorate work at Ohio State University, he accepted a position at Slippery Rock University in 1969, where he would pursue his passion for teaching as a beloved German professor in the modern language department for 30 years. Great highlights for him were his summer courses for German students in Berlin, Germany, and the organization of annual three-day German Festivals for the university.

During one of the summer courses he met his second wife, Anne. They were married for 33 years and have two children.

Stephen was a man of many interests and always engaged in his community. He was an active member of the Slippery Rock Heritage Association and loved bowling with his two teams in Slippery Rock and Grove City. Only severe illness at the age of 90 finally stopped him from participating in his favorite sport. Other fascinations of his were science fiction novels, astronomy and the nature of the universe. He hardly missed a meteor shower, no matter what time at night, and was a loyal subscriber to scientific magazines.

In his retirement, he could not give up teaching completely, and so he enthusiastically held many presentations on topics that had special appeal to him, such as the German reformer, Martin Luther, and his wife, Katharina von Bora, or the Eastern Woodland Indians.

His family will remember him as a caring, loving father and husband, always supporting the aspirations of his loved ones.

He is survived by his wife, Anne; his children, Carl, Max, Piri, Ilya, Jackie, Natasha, Marty and Stevie; his grandchildren, Austin, Zina and Ishi; his brothers, Patrick, Raymond, Gerald and Edwin; and his sister, Mary Jane.

GLINSKY — A memorial service for Stephen P. Glinsky Jr., who died Monday, July 7, 2025, will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday, July 26, at Russell Wright Alumni House, 105 Campus Drive, Slippery Rock. Shared remarks will be at 1:30 p.m., and refreshments will be provided following the memorial.

Private interment will take place at Slippery Rock Cemetery.

In memory of Stephen, please consider a donation to the Lutheran SeniorLife Foundation: lutheranseniorlife.org/donate.

Arrangements have been entrusted to SMITH FUNERAL HOME, Slippery Rock.

Please sign the guest book at www.butlereagle.com.