Joseph A. Nowak, Jr., of Wilmington passed peacefully on Wednesday, February 25 at his home surrounded by family.

Born in Wilmington, he was the son of the late Marie L. (Dougherty) and Joseph A. Nowak Sr. Joe attended St Matthew's elementary and St Elizabeth's middle, before graduating from Salesianum School in 1960, where he excelled in academics and sports, especially in baseball and basketball. He was the starting point guard in basketball and captain of his senior baseball team where he led from 3rd base. He went on to earn a BA from Providence College and a M.Ed from West Chester State College.

Following his graduation from Providence, he applied to teach at Salesianum, which became his true calling and the start of a 42-year career of teaching English, coaching various sports, and mentoring students that often needed that extra support and motivation to be successful. His frequent community contact with past students made it clear how much he was loved and had positively impacted their lives.

Joe was known for his kind and gentle demeanor, humor, and absolute devotion to his family. He was an avid tennis player, passionate follower of Notre Dame football, while introducing the wonderful stories of Winnie-the-Pooh to grand and great-grandchildren. He was a very simple man who was generous to a fault, making sure we all had what we needed while he wore hoodies and tennis shoes with significant wear, which became his signature style.

Joe (PopPop) will be dearly missed by his large family legacy. He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Donna (Duffey) Nowak, his sister, Carol Urban (Rick); his children and their spouses: Becky Krajewski (Marty), Paul (Lisa), Matthew (Jackie); his beloved grandchildren: Joshua (Amber), Ryan (Heather), Sarah (Aaron), Paige (Hunter), Emily (Giles), Anna (Angelo), Joseph (Anna), Kasey (John), Jacob, Colin, and Finn; and his great grand-children: Fiona, Holden, Lennon, Lawson, Avery, and Cecilia.

A visitation will be held on Saturday, March 7th from 1:00 PM to 2:30 PM with his celebration of life to begin at 2:30 PM at Mealey Funeral Home, 2509 Limestone Road, Wilmington, DE 19808.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to, The Boys and Girls Clubs of Delaware through their website: , or to Delaware Hospice through their website: hospice.org.