Andrew J. Donnelly, Jr.

Andrew J. Donnelly Jr. was born on August 28, 1927, the only son of Andrew and Lucy Donnelly. Andrew and his four sisters were raised in West Brighton. He attended Blessed Sacrament School, PS 45
and Curtis High School. He enlisted in the Navy in 1945 completing his basic training in Newport, Rhode Island. He served during World War II ultimately on the aircraft carrier the USS Leyte.

Serving on the aircraft carrier forever changed his life, sparking his lifelong love of aviation. He was honorably discharged in 1947 and attended the Academy of Aeronautics. He worked for Pacific Airmotive
and for Lockheed Martin as an aviation inspector and mechanic for many years.

Upon completion of his college degree, he continued to share his knowledge and love of aviation with his students becoming a teacher at Aviation High School in Queens.

He was the owner of Richmond Aircraft Service and Andy’s Aircraft Service. He met the love of his life, Madeline Fagan, when convinced by his childhood friend George, to go on a blind date with him and his date Maureen who brought along her best friend Madeline. Andrew and Madeline married in 1953 and went on to share four children: Andrew, William, Catherine, and Eileen. They settled in Port Richmond on Decker Avenue as newlyweds and then on Hatfield Place as their family grew. They purchased their home on Anderson Ave in 1965 which remains in the family today. Andrew was a parishioner of St. Mary of the Assumption Church until the time of his death in April of 2011 at the age of 83.

Over the years, Dad continued to share his love of aviation with his family. We took cross-country road trips attending many airshows and visiting the Smithsonian Air and Space museums. We were truly blessed with wonderful parents who provided us with priceless memories.


Sponsored by Catherine Donnelly Dembinski