John Andrew Kowal
 May 28, 1958 - July 8, 2020 John Andrew Kowal, loving husband, sibling and uncle passed away at the age of 62 on Wednesday July 8, 2020 at home with his family at his side. He fought the good fight against cancer until the very end. John was born on May 28, 1958 in Chicago, IL to John Andrew Kowal and Loretto Estelle (Walsh). He received his degree from Knox College in 1980. He worked as an advertising executive early in his career until he found his true passion in industrial automation where he worked for most of his career. He married his best friend and “the girl next door” Stephanie Frisque on September 16, 2000 and they made their home in Batavia, IL. John was the Director of Business Development for B&R Industrial Automation for the past 11 years where he was responsible for business development and marketing of their industrial automation technologies. John’s biggest passion, outside of his family and fly fishing, was industrial automation. He also played a leadership role in the Global Packaging Solutions Group. John was the inspiration behind “The Adaptive Machine”. This project was his focus for the past two years at B&R and it has driven disruptive innovations into Industry towards a batch size one manufacturing process. John was a true visionary who will leave a lasting impact for not only B&R but also the field of industrial automation. John earned a great place in industrial automation and leaves a legacy for manufacturing excellence that will continue into the future. Prior to B&R, John served as Global Marketing Manager of ELAU, where he revolutionized marketing and communication within the Global Packaging Community. John was co-chair of the Industrial Internet Consortium’s Smart Factory Task Group, current member of OMAC and former member of PMMI Boards of Directors, PMMI Strategy, Global Marketing and Membership committees, Purdue University - Calumet Dean’s Executive Council, AMT, ISA, BMA and Automation Conference Advisory Board. John was a prolific speaker and frequent editorial contributor. John was commissioned as an officer of the Commemorative Air Force in the grade of Colonel. Dedicated to the preservation of American World War II Combat Aircraft and support of the CAF Flying Museum for permanent preservation, maintenance and display of these historic aircraft as symbols of our American Military Aviation. John and the CAF Great Lakes Wing flew WWII airplanes in airshows throughout the country. He was partial to the C-47 and the Junkers JU-52 both military transport aircraft during WWII. A highlight of his hobby was assisting as a pilot in a flag jump honoring WWII Allied Nations at Andrews Air Force base (now Joint Base Andrews). John was a passionate fly fisherman and it was one of his greatest enjoyments in life. The solitude and excitement of “chasing fish” all over the world brought great joy to John. His experiences included fishing “Brookies”, Steelhead and Brown Trout in the Midwest to Salmon in Alaska, Bonefish in the Caribbean, Tarpon, Snook, Snapper and Barracuda in Mexico, Machaca in Costa Rica and wild Trout and Grayling in Europe. No matter where John was in the world, he always found a day or two to get a guide and fly fish in the region. John especially had a fond place in his heart for his local fly fishing friends in the UP (Upper Peninsula of Michigan) and fishing in the region. Which to this day remained his favorite place to “chase fish”. John and his wife Stephanie were best friends and had a storybook marriage. They spent a lot of time traveling to new places around the world and they always had smiles on their faces. They chose each other for companions in everything they did in life. John and Stephanie had a passion for new cultures, new cuisine and world history. John had a special affinity for mastering languages which made him a wonderful traveling companion. John was an adoring husband and a mentor and role model to all his nieces and nephews. John was a brilliant man, known for his quick wit, intelligence, honesty, knowledge about anything you could possibly think of, his humbleness, infectious smile and his kind, compassionate spirit. John defined himself as “the honest marketing guy”. He was an amazing writer as witnessed by everyone who knew him. John was an extraordinary man and will be missed by all who were fortunate to have had the chance to know him. It’s been an honor and privilege to be part of John’s life. John was preceded in death by his father and mother, John and Loretto Kowal and his father-in-law James Frisque. He is survived by his beloved wife Stephanie, his mother-in-law Kathleen (Bob) Hosch, his sister Loret (Joe) Beach, brother Mark Kowal, brother-in-law Scott Frisque, sisters-in-law Sharlene (Dan) Otto and Shawna (Kevin) DuBois and many nieces and nephews. Due to Covid-19 a private visitation will be held on Thursday, July 16, 2020, at Moss Family Funeral Home, 209 South Batavia Ave., Batavia, IL 60510. A private memorial service will take place on Friday, July 17, 2020, also at the Funeral Home. A Celebration of Life memorial will take place in August in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan at East Branch Fox River State Forest Campground in Seney, MI which was the inspiration for John’s favorite author, Ernest Hemingway’s short story “Big Two-Hearted River”. In lieu of flowers memorial donations may be made to, Michigan Trout Unlimited P.O. Box 442 Dewitt, MI 48820 http://www.michigantu.org/index.php/support-our-work/make-a-donation-to-michigan-tu |
