Lawrence Augustine Nowak

August 11, 1934 – September 8, 2024

Lawrence “Larry” Nowak was born August 11, 1934 in Duluth, Minnesota during the Great Depression to Louis J. and Nellie (Peloquin) Nowak. He was the youngest of nine brothers. His father was fortunate to work for the railroad and remained employed throughout the depression years, giving him the ability to support his large family.

Larry excelled in school, earning mostly A’s and the occasional B. He graduated in 1952 from Cathedral Senior High School in Duluth with Salutatorian honors. He often noted that Monsignor had asked him where he planned to go to college following graduation. Larry responded he assumed the University of Minnesota at Duluth (UMD) as the family didn’t have the means to pay for college. Monsignor replied emphatically “you can’t go to UMD!”. Monsignor was able to secure a three-year scholarship to prestigious St. John’s University in Collegeville, MN, where Larry continued to excel in academics.

All but one of Larry’s brothers served in the United States Armed Forces. (The oldest brother was a member of the clergy.) Larry followed in the tradition of service to our country as an ROTC cadet at St. John’s; his academic standing allowed him to promote to Second Lieutenant in the United States Army Reserve following graduation in 1956.

Larry graduated from St. John’s with a Bachelor’s of Arts degree in physics and mathematics. Following graduation, he took a position with newly formed Hughes Aircraft Company in El Segundo, California as an aerospace engineer. In his nearly 35 year career at Hughes, he worked on numerous satellite programs that helped to advance the space and communication technology that we have today.

Larry was a part of the Surveyor spacecraft project that was the first soft lunar landing and a precursor to the Apollo program. His father, who had only an eighth-grade education said he never dreamed he’d see a man on the moon let alone that his own son would have something to do with it.

Larry continued to be a member of the Army Reserve. He performed five months of active-duty service from 1958 to 1959. In 1963 he was promoted to Captain in the Army Reserve. His specialty title was Ordnance Ammo Officer. He was Honorably Discharged in 1969.

Larry met his future wife, Therese (Terri) O’Connor in 1965 through a Catholic Alumni association group. They were engaged six months later on New Year’s Eve and married in July 1966 in Los Angeles, CA. Their daughter Laura was born in 1967.

The Nowak brothers (affectionately known as “the Brothers”) ages spanned nearly 20 years. Despite the wide range in ages, the Brothers remained close to one another throughout the years, and instilled a close-knit family bond with their wives and children. Much of the family gathered together each summer at their cabins north of Duluth. The Brothers competed annually in the local Duluth Senior Olympics. They were competitive in a variety of events including bocce ball, speed walking and the card game Bridge. To this day, the family continues to have reunions every few years.

Larry often found himself with various woodworking, concrete and assorted repair projects. He was happy to help with assorted projects for his family and friends, often travelling with random tools in his luggage to complete the tasks at hand. He saw nothing wrong with stashing an orbital hand sander or an unassembled oak cabinet in his suitcase.

His modest upbringing and early years during the Depression carried with him throughout his life. He was known for his use of coupons and saving everything because “I might need that scrap of wood for something someday.” Larry enjoyed his projects, many of which will live on as a warm memory of him and his craftsmanship.

Larry retired from Hughes Aircraft in 1989 at the age of 55. He spent his retirement years doing the things he enjoyed: woodworking, gardening and spending time with his family at their vacation homes in Big Bear Lake, CA and Cocoa Beach, FL. He and his wife Terri were fortunate to spend their retirement years traveling. They visited Ireland, Italy, New York and Alaska.

Larry was active in his local parish, St. James Catholic Church in Redondo Beach, CA where he was the senior money counter, usher and Eucharistic minister. His Catholic faith was instilled at an early age and carried through to his final days.

Larry faced many medical and physical challenges throughout his life, from pancreatitis, back surgeries and ultimately a feeding tube because of a swallowing issue. He persevered with a smile on his face until the very end. He was an example of how to endure challenges and still find time for a joke or memory of times past – his favorite exclamation being “To the Good Times!”

Larry is survived by his loving wife of over 58 years, Terri; his daughter Laura and her husband Robin Brown; his brother Jerry (age 100) and his many nieces and nephews and their children and grandchildren. Larry was preceded in death by his parents and seven brothers, Victor, Leonard, Francis, Vincent, Eugene, Joseph and John.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at St. James Catholic Church, 415 Vincent St., Redondo Beach on Tuesday, October 1 at 10 am. Interment is at Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California at 1:30pm.