Thomas Zinavage

Memorial services will be held this Saturday, March 22, 2003 at 2:00 p.m., at the First United Methodist Church in Waynesville for Thomas Zinavage, who died on December 19, 2002, in Hendersonville. The family will receive friends from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. on Friday, March 21, 2003, at Wells Funeral Home in Waynesville.

He was a native of Plains, Pennsylvania and was the son of the late Antoni and Katharina Romanowska Ziniewicz.

A long time resident of Waynesville, Zinavage spent his last years at Givens Estates in Asheville. He was an active member of First United Methodist Church and a long time member of the choir, the Methodist Men, and the grounds committee. He also worked closely with Haywood Christian Ministries and often visited inmates as part of HCM's prison ministry. He was retired from his position as Claims Adjustor with the North Carolina Employment Security Commission.

Zinavage had a long and illustrious Naval career, achieving the rank of Lieutenant Commander. He was stationed on the U.S.S. Lexington during World War II, and was an accomplished Naval Pilot and navigator, serving for a period as Admiral ''Bull'' Halsey's personal pilot. He was also actively involved as a pilot in the search for Amelia Earhart, and appears in Doris Rich's book, Amelia Earhart: A Biography, as a consultant. With knowledge of Polish, Russian, and Japanese, he was also involved in wartime intelligence. After the war, he commanded a Naval base at Okinawa, Japan.

He is survived by his wife, Zula Zinavage, a resident of Givens Estates; two daughters, Floretta Smith of Landisburg, PA, and Carol Zinavage of Knoxville, TN; three grandchildren, Bob Phillips of Gloucester, VA, Annette Shuman of Shippensburg, PA, Kathy Lyman of Pensacola, FL; and six great-grandchildren.

The family requests that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made to First United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 838, Waynesville, NC 28786, or to Haywood Christian Ministries, 149 Branner Avenue, Waynesville, NC 28786, or to Alzheimer's Foundation, 919 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 1100, Chicago, IL 60611-1676.

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