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Mieczyslaw (Mick) Grabowski, 96, a resident of The Dalles, Ore., passed away peacefully at the Mid-Columbia Medical Center on Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2020, with his family at his side.
He was born Sept. 18, 1923, in Sokoly, Poland. He was one of five children to Lucjan and Czeslawa. Early on in his life, he grew up on the family farm, cultivating a love and compassion for animals and especially birds. He attended the village parish with his family and the local school. During this time, he acquired a deep reverence and faith in the Lord Jesus. Things changed suddenly when Russian forces invaded Poland and young Mieczyslaw was told by his mother to literally hide in the field in a fox den. Next, the German forces invaded Poland and pushed out the Russians. One day after a parish service, the German forces conscripted all boys into forced labor camps. Sixteen-year-old Mieczyslaw was taken away from his family. Initially he was taken to dig foxholes at the front lines under fire and physical deprivation. Surviving the front lines and physical sickness, he was forced into farm labor to provide food for German forces. At the end of the World War II, German forces took him again to the front lines to dig foxholes and build fortifications under severe fire from Allied forces. Later, the Allied forces, lead by the British army, liberated Mieczyslaw. He immediately helped the Allied liberators and their efforts to build and secure the Allied liberation of Germany. Mieczyslaw joined the Polish Armed Forces in the West (PAFW) to support the Polish government in exile. In 1947, the PAFW was disbanded and Mieczyslaw, now referred to as Mick, elected to not return to communist Poland.
He married Hildegard on Dec. 28, 1948, in Germany and they immigrated to Australia in 1950. In 1951, their daughter, Ingrid, was born. While in Australia, he built his career at the Bunnerong Power Station. Mick traversed through the difficulties of being a non-English speaking immigrant to Australia and throughout his life. He worked diligently to support his family and better their lives. His daughter Ingrid married Bill Fisher in 1969 and moved to The Dalles, Ore. In 1977, Mick and Hilda relocated to The Dalles to be near Ingrid’s family. Throughout Mick’s life, his decisions were based around prioritizing family above all else. Mick worked for the North Wasco County School District and retired in 1985.
Mick was a member of the Mid-Columbia Senior Center and attended Gateway Presbyterian Church, where he enjoyed the Thursday morning Men’s Group and their fellowship. After retirement, Mick continued to commit himself to his family and was a loving husband, father, grandfather, and great grandfather. His family affectionately called him “Poppy” and “Opa.” He will be dearly missed by all that knew him.
In his later days, Mick received loving care from Cherry Heights Retirement Community and Flagstone Senior Living.
He is survived by his daughter, Ingrid Fisher, and her husband, Bill Fisher, of The Dalles; his grandchildren, Alisa Miller of Sioux Falls, S.D., Sarah Fisher of Long Beach, Calif., and John Fisher of Spokane, Wash.; great-grandsons Caleb and Joshua Miller of Sioux Falls; and great-granddaughters Zoe and Ellis Fisher of Spokane. He was preceded in death by his wife, Hildegard, on Dec. 26, 2004, and his siblings in Poland.
A graveside service for Mick’s family and friends will be held on Sept. 19 at St. Peter’s Catholic Cemetery at 11 a.m. In lieu of flowers, remembrances may be made to the Gateway Presbyterian Church Deacon’s Fund, P.O. Box 481, The Dalles, OR 97058 and Home At Last Humane Society, 200 River Road, The Dalles, OR 97058.
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