Melvin Nowaczyk of Munster, IN passed away January 30, 2024, at 85 years old. He is survived by Shirley (Repasi) his wife of 62 years; two sons Steve (Carol), and John Nowaczyk; grandchildren Megan (Jay) Perkins of Neptune Beach, FL. And Steven Nowaczyk of Tempe, AZ; and great grandson Brooks Perkins. Also survived by niece Nancy Feldman; nephew Roy Niksich; niece Suzanne Tompa. Preceded in death by his parents John and Praxeda Nowaczyk; sisters Delores Nowaczyk, Audrey Limbert, and Nancy Spasoff.

Mel grew up in Chicago and graduated from Bowen High School. He worked as a union Lithographer (in the printing industry his job was known as a stripper), retiring in 1998 after 39 years. Mel and Shirley moved from Hegewisch to Calumet City in 1969 and raised their family there before moving to Munster.

Mel was a thrifty man who loved tools, could fix almost anything, and was always willing to help anyone. After having his new Calumet City garage built, he immediately purchased a vise for his work bench and installed an old oil heater because he was tired of working on cars in the cold. He then built an air compressor from parts he collected, later he purchased a welder, and as his means grew so did his collection of tools. He always said, “without tools you can’t fix anything”.

Always curious he took on many new interests such as tropical fish, the very large model train layout he built in his Calumet City basement, and his legendary tomato garden with 8-foot plants tied to stakes. In his fifties he took on cooking, starting with his mother’s recipes for oxtail and chicken soup. His 6-gallon soup pot was the talk of family and friends and another testament to his thriftiness as bulk was always less expensive. He went on to cook many new delicious dishes and at 80 he discovered the wok. He used a wok to cook almost every meal for the last 5 years of his life. Mel was also a proud member of the National Rifle Association.

Services will be private and in lieu of flowers a memorial donation can be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital at stjude.org.

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