JOHN W. ZIBRO

John Warren Zibro, age 64,, son of the late John William Zibro and the late Evelyn Hazel Lindeman Zibro died D after a long illness. He suffered from both congestive heart failure (2000) and Addison’s disease (2005).

John was born, and raised, in downtown Troy, NY attending Saint Mary’s School, Washington Park, and LaSalle Institute, then on Fourth Street, where he graduated with Honors in 1960, sixteenth overall in his class, and first in his junior-senior years.

He is survived by his former wife, Martha Walsh Zibro of Waterford, two sons: Matthew Kenneth Zibro (Michele Murphy) of Latham, and Daniel Christopher Zibro (Maureen Winters) of Waterford, and a daughter: Christa Yvonne Zibro Dederick (Douglas) of the Town of Rensselaerville.

Also, two grandchildren: Carina Elizabeth (Carrie) and Samuel Christopher (Sammie) Dederick, with oldest sister, Madeline Yvonne (Maddie), dying at just 3˝ months of age i n Feb.2001. In addition, there are five cousins: David and Frank Lindeman were almost as brothers; and eight nieces and nephews.

With a childhood start in operations, and accounting as a teenager, John was involved in branch & general management in family-owned-and-operated retail and wholesale businesses founded, beginning in 1897, by his ‘Grampie,’ Frank Zibro (Franciscus Ziobrow, a custom tailor who, solo at age 15, immigrated from Strzyzow, Poland, southeast of Krakow, in 1890).

Frank, with wife Ethel Ondic of Budapest, Hungary, raised three sons who were each instrumental in one of the separate businesses that existed for 85 years & spanned 4 generations: Frank Zibro Clothing, John; E.J.Zibro Tires, Ed; and Zibro Appliances, Bill. Nana’s contribution was cooking full Saturday meals for employees (in sittings) of those t hree businesses.

John’s maternal Grandpa, John Kenneth Lindeman of Taborton, was a production and manufacturing engineer for Behr-Manning Papermaking Company on Mount Ida in Troy, while Grandma Elizabeth Teal (originally, Diehl) from the Town of Sand Lake, NY baked simply delicious pies, pastries, and cakes, and cooked heartwarming soups, stews, and Sunday meals. His uncle, Kenneth J. Lindeman, an accountant in the State Comptroller’s office, became business manager of the N.Y. State Fair for many years, expanding it and gradually making “The Fair” the grand attraction that it has become today. Uncle Ken was honored by the Onondaga Indians of Central New York with the name: wahohdawase, “He who belongs in business.”

John first attended Canisius College of Buffalo as a mathematics-physics (pre-engineering) major where he played Division I basketball. The Golden Griffins were NIT finalists in 1963 against John Thompson (Hall of Fame) and Providence College.

A member of the Class of 1966 at West Point, John became a Vietnam combat veteran, serving a joint-duty assignment with the Air Force & Marine Corps in communications, intelligence, and forward air control (FAC), based at the I Corps Headquarters, Da Nang; also serving in the field at 11 remote sites from the DMZ to Pleiku in the Central Highlands. For his efforts in Feb. 1968, attached to the Marines during the ‘Siege of Khe Sanh,’ a signature battle of the U.S. Marine Corps, following the Tet Offensive of late-January, he received a Bronze Star; he also flew 32 AF missions in Marine FAC support, and was noted as one of just three dozen ‘Honorary Marines.’

His study of languages, Latin and especially three years of French while at LaSalle Institute, served well in communicating with the Vietnamese. John added two years of German while studying psychology, and touched Polish, Hungarian, Russian in his adult years.

John became a market research-economic analyst in Corporate Strategic Planning for Philips Electronics, North America of N.V. Philips, the Netherlands, at Slatersville, Rhode Island and New York City in the mainly industrial sectors of computer electronics, telecommunications systems, and electronic systems.

He began his teaching career as instructor of C4ISR (command & control systems) for NORAD, NEADS, and SAC, the AF Research Laboratory at Rome, NY, Griffiss AFB, and Plattsburgh AFB (Air Force, all), and Total Quality for the Watervliet Arsenal (Army).

Last holding the rank of Clinical Associate Professor and Research Associate, John taught in mathematics -physics; computer science-information systems; operations research-applied statistics; engineering: electronics, industrial, systems; and management: production and operations, organizational behavior, marketing, economics, finance, and strategy & policy.

While primarily at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (15 years), and the SUNY Institute of Technology at Utica / Rome (5 years), teaching in engineering and management, he was also an adjunct professor in the School of Business, the University at Albany; the MBA Program of Sage Graduate School; and the Science Division (mathematics-computer science) at Siena College, for over 25 years total. He taught dissertation-level Experimental Research Design, and led discourses in Corporate Responsibility & Ethics. He consulted nationwide to a dozen General Electric SBUs (strategic business units), the IBM Advanced Technology Center at East Fishkill, Martin Marietta (now Lockheed Martin), B.F. Goodrich Aerospace, Johnson & Johnson, Proctor & Gamble, and various northeast industrial firms, and several state, county, and town governments, and social service agencies.

John taught finance courses in the GE Management Development Institute ( “Harvard on the Hudson,” Crotonville, NY), at the GE classroom (above the Little Theatre, SPAC) and the Gideon Putnam Resort and Conference Center, Saratoga Springs, and at the Rensselaerville Institute southwest of Albany.

He had deep breadth in government and community programs: as an Air Force officer with 28 years total active duty, Vietnam combat, reserve, instructor, and consulting experience (terminal rank of Lt. Colonel); as a past-president of The Polish-American Club of Rensselaer County (organized by his grandfather and others in 1906, incorporated in 1932); as a member, the Air Force Association of New York State; and as a parish council past-president, and principal lector.

John was also involved in youth leadership programs: the Troy Boys & Girls Club, CYO basketball, Little League baseball (manager and board member), with the privilege of coaching an undefeated team, 14-0 in league play, and the last All-Star team from the city of Cohoes to become District 14 Champions, in 1982.

He was a founding member, officer, team captain, and past-board member of the Colonie Senior (50+) Basketball League (CSBL) founded in the Fall 1991, now in its 15th season, having expanded from 4 to 16 teams, still playing aggressive full-court b’ball; and a member, the Interstatesmen Drum & Bugle Corps of Troy, NY and Pittsfield, MA (in the 60s), more recently with the New York Skyliners Alumni through Summer 2000 when he became seriously ill.

He remained active with the CSBL as a scorekeeper and timekeeper, as contributing byline author to its weekly newsletter, “The Hoopster,” and developed several software programs to automate administrative tasks; also developing an e-mail newsletter to keep l eague members up-to-date on college games of keen interest, holiday parties, dinner-dances, injuries and illnesses, hospitalizations, or deaths of close relatives.

For years he orchestrated Hanukkah-Christmas and Season Awards Buffets that were held at Eamonn’s Banquet House, Irish Tavern & Music Hall on Menand Road, before Eamonn McGirr’s untimely death, and the later burning of that historic building. John’s career education was in applied mathematics (modern physics and electronics engineering); and communications, computers & intelligence (C4ISR); psychology (cognitive & organizational); operations research and applied statistics; systems engineering and management; industrial administration; and also strategic management: economic analysis and policy.

This education came from Canisius College (Jesuits) of Buffalo; the U.S. Military Academy, West Point; the U.S. Air Force Technological University; and both Union College and the Graduate Management Institute of Union University; and the Kenneth T., and Thelma P., Lally School of Management and Technology (owner, Teledyne-Gurley, a precision-instrument manufacturer in Troy, RPI trustee), the George M. Low Center for Industrial Innovation (RPI graduate; NASA Apollo administrator; RPI’s 14th president, 1976-1984), and the J.Eric Jonsson School of Engineering Center (RPI graduate, and founder of Texas Instruments), all at Rensselaer.

John held professional memberships and affiliations in INFORMS (The Institute for Operations Research and Management Sciences), IEEE (The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers), the IEEE Engineering Management Society (a founding member of the Capital District Chapter), and the Strategic Management Society.

He was also honored as an outstanding teacher: at Siena College (by the Dean of Science), twice at Rensselaer Polytechnic (the Institute President, and the Dean of Management and Technology), and by “Who’s Who in American Education.”

Services for John will be at the Brendese Funeral Home, 133 Broad Street, Route 32, Waterford, NY
Viewing Hours - Thursday December 7 - 4pm to 8pm
Funeral Services - Friday December 8 - 9am at the Funeral Home