Charles W Syak

Charles W. Syak, 96, of Girard, passed away in the early morning of September 3, 2011.  Mr. Syak was born in Youngstown, Ohio, March 15, 1915 and graduated from Girard Senior High School in 1934, marrying his high school sweetheart, Sarah Jane Caines, the same year.  Following graduation he attended evening classes in engineering.  He worked at General Fireproofing from 1935-1939, and for the US Army Corps of Engineers in Cincinnati, Ohio from 1941 to 1946 as a civil engineer and draftsman on harbor projects in the Ohio River Division and general construction for US W.W.II efforts.  He became one of three founders of the Syro Steel company ( the idea born on a porch and opening with five employees in a garage in 1946).  From this inauspicious beginning, Syro grew to be one of the largest employers in Girard for several decades.  Mr. Syak served as secretary treasurer, President and CEO.  Over the course of his forty-six year tenure the company flourished, patenting several groundbreaking safety improvements, including guardrail and crash  cushioning devices, on roadways across the country, even supplying one hundred fifty thousand tons of aircraft landing matt in Vietnam.  By the time he retired in 1992, Syro had its highest business volume, nearly one hundred million sales, with two plants in Girard and one in Centerville, Utah, manufacturing everything from bridge railing to railroad car parts.  At the time it was noted in the industry as "an aggressive, trustworthy, competitive and profitable company."  Mr. Syak was an avid golfer, fisherman, enjoyed gardening, art and music, but departed from tradition in his "golden years" and took on a new hobby, owning and operating a small dairy farm in Ashtabula, Ohio for roughly eleven years.  In 1993 he founded the Charles W. and Sarah J. Syak Foundation, and as of 2009 the foundation had provided over 41,000 grants to benefit education, the arts and nonprofit charitable organizations.  Mr. Syak was preceded in death by his father Andrew and mother Caroline, sisters Anne Marie and Frances (Ross), and only son Harry A. Syak.  Surviving are his wife, Sarah, their only daughter Sally Williams ( Husband Robert), niece Ilsa Leonhart, daughter-in-law Patricia Syak, grandson Peter Syak (Wife, Marete), granddaughters Leslie Burgoyne (husband Thomas) and Elayne Knowlton, great-grandson Jake Knowlton and great-granddaughter Cadence Burgoyne.  He will be greatly missed by all who knew and loved him, including his faithful 14 year old yellow lab, Molly. A memorial service will be held on Thursday, September 8th,  11:00 AM, at the First Baptist Church in Girard.  The family will receive relatives and friends on Wednesday from 5-8PM at the Blackstone Funeral Home in Girard.  The family requests any material contributions be made to the First Baptist Church Memorial Fund, the Youngstown Symphony or the Alzheimers Foundation in Charles memory. To view this obituary and to send condolences to the Syak family visit www.blackstonesfh.com.