Business owner was a staple in Mt. Pleasant community
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Stanley Yanuck became such a staple in the Mt. Pleasant community that customers nicknamed him “the chief.”
“I think just by being the boss we just all started calling him ‘the chief,’” Yanuck’s son, Michael, said.
For 46 years Yanuck operated Diamond Auto Parts along Route 819 in Mt. Pleasant Township, a business he started with the help of his father, Henry.
“He always wanted a store and he thought he wanted a grocery store,” Yanuck’s wife, Barbara, said. “Then he had relatives in the auto parts store and they helped him get started and that’s how it lasted for 46 years.”
And, according to Michael Yanuck, his dad excelled at being a salesman, joking that Stanley Yanuck could “sell a ketchup Popsicle to a woman in white gloves.”
Mr. Stanley W. Yanuck, 82, of Mt. Pleasant died Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2020, at Excela Health Frick Hospital. Born in Brownsville, he was the son of Henry H. and Josephine M. Kopczak Yanuck.
Along with owning the parts store, Mr. Yanuck had a passion for antique vehicles, including Lincolns and his 1979 Thunderbird Heritage.
But nothing could sway Mr. Yanuck from giving his attention to his wife of almost 56 years.
Barbara Yanuck met her husband while playing mini-golf with a friend 59 years ago.
According to Barbara, Mr. Yanuck was playing with a friend behind the duo, and they eventually joined up and finished out their game together.
“He was the best thing that ever happened to me,” she said.
Michael Yanuck added, “He was so devoted to my mother. He just never left my mother. They were partners to the end.”
In his free time, Mr. Yanuck enjoyed camping with his wife, with Pioneer Park Campground in Somerset and Lake Erie among his favorite spots. After retiring from the Diamond Auto Parts store, Mr. Yanuck purchased a motor home so he and Barbara could travel.
He also was an active member of the Transfiguration of Our Lord Polish National Catholic Church, where he served as treasurer, director and chairman. He was member of the Army Reserves.
In addition to his wife and son, he is survived by son David Allan Yanuck, several grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Friends and family will be received from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday at Saloom-Rega Funeral Service, 730 West Main St., Mt. Pleasant.
A funeral Mass will be celebrated 10 a.m. Saturday at Transfiguration of Our Lord Polish National Catholic Church, Mt. Pleasant.
Interment will follow in the Transfiguration Cemetery, Mt. Pleasant.