GRANITEVILLE, S.C. - Richard Henry Bednarski, 73 entered into rest on Saturday, July 3, 2009. A Funeral Mass will be held at 11 AM Monday, July 6, 2009 at St. Joseph's Catholic Church with Father Rafael Estrada officiating. Interment will follow at Mt. Olive Memorial Gardens with full military honors. A Rosary Service will be held at 7:00 PM Sunday, July 5, 2009 at Elliott Sons Funeral Home on Lumpkin Road. He was preceded in death by his wife, Ida M. Bednarski. He was born in Stanislawow, Poland and lived there until the invasion by Germany and Russin in 1940. He and his family were sent to several different Displaced Persons Camps throughout Russia. In 1950 the family was able to leave Russia and Poland and came to the United States. Mr. Bednarski served 22 years in the United Stated Army during the Vietnam Era and retired as a Platoon Sergeant with honors including the Purple Heart. He made his home in Augusta working as a diesel truck mechanic for 15 years and later moved to South Carolina. He was a member of St. Joseph's Catholic Church. He is survived by his wife, Joyce Bednarski; six children, Dieter(Sherri) Bednarski, Augusta, Mary Ann (Morgan) Perry, Martinez, Lily (Jeff) Finch, Florence, South Carolina, Daphine (Ed) Kophazy, Grovetown, Sonja (Keith) Solomon, Hephzibah, Rosie (Randall) Cook, Harlem; four stepsons, Ricky (Cindy) Sanders, Mark Sanders, Chris (Tammy) Sanders, Phillip (Cheryl) Sanders, all of Aiken, South Carolina; eight grandchildren; one great grandchild; his mother, Frances Boltralik, West Virginia; sister, Lidia Kobylak, Cass City, Michigan; half sister, Anna B. Urguiza, Indiana and a half brother, Fabian Boltralik, West Virginia. Memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society. The family will receive friends at the home of Sonja Solomon after the service. The family will receive friends from 5 - 7 PM Sunday, July 5, 2009 at Elliott Sons Funeral Home, 2524 Lumpkin Road, Augusta, Georgia. Sign the guestbook at AugustaChronicle.com

The Augusta Chronicle-July 4, 2009