Jan Jozef Wlodarkiewicz ’57
Jan Jozef Wlodarkiewicz ’57 of Marina Del Rey, California, died in his sleep on December 1, 2018, after a long battle with multiple myeloma. Jan exemplified the American dream. Born into aristocracy, he and his family became refugees during WW II. When he was 9, he and his mother escaped Poland in 1944 on the last train out of Warsaw. They pretended to be French war emigres, according to Jan, who said this was easy for his mother, who spoke many languages, but terrifying for him, who spoke only Polish. His father interned in a Russian labor camp from which he escaped, reunited with his family in London, and they immigrated to the United States, where they lived in a cold-water flat in Queens, New York. Jan came to Dartmouth from Haaren High School in New York City. He majored in international relations and was a member of Delta Upsilon, WDBS (three years), and the Mountaineering Club, serving as vice president. Jan earned a master’s in international relations from Johns Hopkins University. Unfortunately, the Cold War prevented him from gaining security clearance for high-level government service. In 1959 Jan changed his focus to the emerging computer industry. He was involved in the development of the first computerized hotel reservations systems as well as large-scale financial services. Jan met his wife, Reba, in 1964. He is survived by her, daughters Diana and Cheryl, and son Mark.
