Captain Raymond A. Komorowski, U.S. Navy (Retired) grew up in Jersey City,
N.J. He received his education at Cornell University and the University of
Rochester and received his commission as a U.S. Navy officer in 1945.
A loyal friend, a strong and compassionate leader, and a gifted writer and
speaker, he was endowed with a powerful intellect and a wonderful sense
of humor. In sum, he was a Shipmate of the first order.
Immediately after being commissioned, he reported to the USS LSM 341,
serving as part of the Yangtze River Valley Group evacuating U.S. citizens
from China in the path of advancing Chinese Communist armies. He
subsequently served in the heavy cruiser COLUMBUS in Europe, placed the
destroyer JOHN PAUL JONES in commission as her first Operations Officer, and
commanded the destroyer escort HARTLEY, the destroyer MANLEY, and the
world’s first guided missile cruiser, the USS BOSTON. These assignments
brought deployments to not only the Mediterranean with the SIXTH Fleet, but
also the Western Pacific with the SEVENTH Fleet. He was awarded the Bronze
Star Medal for meritorious performance in command of the BOSTON in combat
operations off the coast of Vietnam from 27 June to 5 October 1969.
Ashore, he served in a succession of positions of increasing responsibility:
first on the staff of the Commander Destroyer Force, Atlantic Fleet;
later, in the Secretary of the Navy's Office of Legislative Affairs; in the
Office of the Chief of Naval Operations; in the Office of the Secretary of
Defense, an assignment for which he was awarded the Legion of Merit; and as
the Chief of the NATO Branch in the Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Captain Komorowski was a graduate of the senior course at the Naval War
College, Newport, RI and earned a degree of Master of Science in
International Relations from The George Washington University. He was a
prolific writer and frequent contributor to the U.S. Naval Institute
Proceedings and served on their board of review. Before retiring in 1975,
he established and was the first editor of the service magazine SURFACE
WARFARE. He continued his association with the publication for another
decade.
In 1975 he was one of the founders of the Surface Navy Association, an
organization dedicated to enhancing the professionalism and esprit of the
surface warfare community, served as National Vice President from 1975 to
1982, and was on the Board of Directors for another ten years. He was an
active member of the Naval Order of the United States.
Captain Komorowski was proud of his Polish heritage. His father, a Polish
immigrant, was a decorated veteran of World War One. As a teenager,
Captain Komorowski served as an honorary pall bearer at the funeral of the
Polish statesman, Ignace Jan Paderewski, in 1941. He was a member of the
Polish American Arts Association and the American Center of Polish Culture.
He was a member of St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church in Falls Church, VA,
where he sang in and directed the choir for many years.
Survivors include his wife of 52 glorious years, Mary Ellen Komorowski of
Chicago, Illinois; five children including Raymond Anthony Komorowski II of
Bronxville, New York, Jon C. Komorowski of Bellingham, Washington, Mary
Beth Markey of Annandale, Virginia, Elaine A. Komorowski of Brooklyn,
New York, and Clare Stanton of Lusby, Virginia;
seven grandchildren, many devoted family members, friends, and Shipmates.