Thomas Clare III and Elaine Kriz

Thomas Clare III

Our grandfather Thomas Clare III was born in New York on 27 December 1920 to parents Thomas and Ruth (Fitzgerald) Clare. He had one younger brother, Richard, and the two boys grew up in Long Island City, Queens, New York. Thomas III attended school there, and the below picture of him at William Bryant High School shows he was involved in the Poster Club.

Both Thomas III and his brother joined the Navy and served in WWII, although records of their service are not available at this time (we can order Thomas’ records, we’ll just need permission from your father as next-of-kin, let me know if you want to do this). After completion of their military service, both brothers continued to serve their country and communities by becoming police officers. Thomas III became a detective for New York’s Police Department (NYPD) and Richard worked for the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) between 1948 and 1968 (see adjacent and below articles), and then continued to work as a civilian for the LAPD until 1985. The below article relays a wild story of Richard surviving a harrowing knife attack in 1950.

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Elaine Francis Kriz

Our grandmother Elaine Francis Kriz (variant: Kris) was born 9 December 1921 in Astoria, Queens, New York to parents Frank and Josephine (Kauders) Kriz. She grew up in Long Island City (next door to Astoria), judging from census data, with her parents and older sister Gladys (born 1916). Elaine’s father was a very talented gymnast and often traveled for competitions, including the Olympics (see his narrative for more details)! The family must have been somewhat famous in their neighborhood as the offspring and spouse of a gold-medal olympic athlete. Unfortunately, Elaine endured her parents’ divorce before the age of 10. She lived with her father and sister, initially moving in with her grandmother Vincencia Kriz Bartunek’s family in Queens before settling in their own home. It remains unclear what happened to Elaine’s mother, Josephine, as we lose her paper trail after the divorce.

Marriage

Thomas III and Elaine probably met in the various social circles of Long Island City. Welcome any stories you may have here!!! They married in June 1941 and had two children:

• Rosemary
• Thomas A. Clare IV (our father) (1944- present)

Thomas III’s military and police service

On 16 November 1942, Thomas III enlisted in the Coast Guard, according to Veterans Affairs records. Although the Coast Guard is currently part of the Department of Homeland Security, it operates under the U.S. Navy during times of war, which it did during Thomas III’s tenure. Thomas III completed his duty on 2 October 1945. We can order Thomas III’s records, let me know if you’d like to do this as we’ll need your dad’s written permission as next of kin. Otherwise, please pass along any stories or info you may have about his service.

After his military service, Thomas III joined the NYPD, eventually becoming a Detective first-grade, quite an accomplishment. He retired from the police force in 1966. The article below offers one highlight from Thomas III’s service.

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The duties of an NYPD detective vary based on his assigned unit. A narcotics detective’s daily routine is different than one working in homicide. But all NYPD detectives perform investigative work, including interviewing suspects and witnesses, conducting surveillance, collecting evidence, completing various reports, making arrests and testifying. A detective is a discretional promotion made after an officer has served on patrol for several years and a minimum of 18 months in an investigative unit. The rank progresses from third grade to first grade. “Detective first-grade” is an elite designation for the department’s most senior and experienced investigators and carries a pay grade slightly less than lieutenants.

Excerpts from an online article on Chron.com and Wikipedia

After retiring from NYPD in 1966, Thomas co-founded a private security company called IBI Security Service, which provides private security to its clients, including armored cars. The below article from The Daily News 27 August 1985 highlights their incredible success!

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Later years

Thomas and Elaine moved to Florida in 1988, living in Boynton Beach and Lake Worth. Elaine’s sister Gladys also moved down to Boynton Beach.

Thomas died 8 January 1998 in Palm Beach, Florida, and is buried in Palm Beach Memorial Park. Elaine lived almost 20 more years, dying 19 April 2015 in Greensboro, GA at the age of 93. She is buried with her husband.