Obituary of Douglas A. Duchak

Duchak, Douglas A. age 63 of Mahwah died Wednesday, March 25, 2015. Born in Garfield, NJ, Doug was a lifelong resident of Bergen County, and lived in Mahwah for 29 years. He was a parishioner of St. Elizabeth's R.C. Church, Wyckoff, NJ. Doug's life was dedicated to family, friends and community service having served on a number of boards including Alpine Learning Group and St. Joseph Regional High School. Doug completed his undergraduate and graduate work at Rutgers University. A hall-of-fame athlete at Midland Park High School, Doug also played football during his college years. His passion for sports never ceased, playing baseball well into his 40's and coaching his children. After he was kicked off the baseball field, Doug's passion turned to golf, becoming a member at Knickerbocker Country Club in Tenafly, NJ. Doug's 22 year career at Englewood Hospital in Englewood, NJ started in 1991 as the CFO, and served as CEO from 2004 to 2013. After leaving Englewood, Doug worked as the Managing Director of Healthcare Services for EisnerAmper of, Iselin, NJ. Doug was a devoted husband and loving father leaving his wife Merri (nee Chapman) of Mahwah, his children, Dean and his wife Kristy of San Francisco, CA, Stacey of New York City and Cory of Cherry Hill, NJ. In their short time together, Doug shared a special relationship with his first granddaughter Julie. Doug was the youngest of three boys, survived by his brother, James Duchak of Valencia, PA and predeceased by his parents Peter and Mary Duchak of Midland Park, NJ and his brother Dean Duchak of Middlebury, CT. Doug will be sorely missed by his entire extended family. The family will receive friends on Sunday from 3:00-7:00 pm at St. Elizabeth's R.C. Church, 700 Wyckoff Ave. Wyckoff, NJ 07481. A Funeral Mass will be held on Monday at 10:00 am at St. Elizabeth's with the interment to follow at Maryrest Cemetery in Mahwah. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that memorial donations be sent to Bancroft Development Office in honor of Doug's support of Cory at 1255 Caldwell Road, Cherry Hill, NJ 08034. Arrangements by the Vander Plaat Funeral Home, www.vpfh.com, 257 Godwin Ave. Wyckoff, NJ 07481.