Retired Air Force Colonel, St. Christopher's Usher Dies

George Terrence "Terry" Ward, 71, passed away Monday at his Parsippany home after a fight against cancer.  

Ward, a Staten Island native, moved to Parsippany with his wife Lillian in 1969. He lived in the township for more than 40 years.  

After graduating from St. Peter’s High School in June 1958, he enlisted in the U.S. Air Force and worked his way up the ladder to become a colonel in 1990. During his military career, Ward served as an aircraft maintenance officer, air transportation officer, squadron commander, deputy wing commander and USAF liaison officer for emergency preparedness to the state of New Jersey.  

Ward graduated from New York Polytechnic Institute  with a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering in 1966, and remained at Brooklyn Poly to earn his masters in industrial management in 1971.   

He was a registered professional engineer and had licenses in New York and New Jersey. After working as an engineer and manager for a number of firms, he ended up spending 24 years as a fluid power engineer for the Knotts Company, retiring in 2009.  

Ward also taught courses in engineering, chemistry, mathematics and forensic science during a 30-year stint as an adjunct professor at the County College of Morris. He left his position at the college just last May.  

For four decades, Ward was a member of St. Christopher Roman Catholic Church in Parsippany, where he was regularly seen as an usher at the church's 8 a.m. Sunday Mass.

Survivors include his wife of 48 years, Lillian Ann Heim Ward; four sons: Michael and his wife Jennifer, Daniel and his wife Lara, Thomas and his wife Katie and James and his wife Susan; and eight grandchildren: Allison, Andrew, Amanda, Steven, Rachel, Aidan, Sean and Charlotte.      

Viewing will be held Thursday from 1-4 and 6-9 p.m. at the , 95 Parsippany Road.                                                          

A Liturgy of Christian Burial takes place Friday at 10 a.m. at St. Christopher Church, 1050 Littleton Road. 

Interment will be at the Gate of Heaven Cemetery in East Hanover. 

In lieu of flowers, the family asks for donations in Ward's memory for the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, 1275 York Ave., New York, N.Y. 10065 or for the American Cancer Society, 7 Ridgedale Ave., Suite 103, Cedar Knolls, N.J. 07927.