John Andrew Mikuluk was born in New York in 1912. He attended Ohio State University, graduated from Wesleyan University and received a master's degree in health administration from Baylor University. He worked for Standard Oil in Ohio and served in the Ohio National Guard before joining the Army at the start of World War II. Col. Mikuluk served in the Medical Service Corps in Europe, India and the South Pacific during the war and later was posted to Austria and Okinawa.
In the Washington area in the 1950s, Col. Mikuluk was assigned to Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Fort Detrick and Fort Meade. He was a parishioner and choir member at St. Nicholas Cathedral in its early years as a temporary building on Massachusetts Avenue in Washington, D.C. He was known as an eligible bachelor for years until his marriage to Catherine Elinski who was born in Pennsylvania in 1928. She was a founding member of our sister parish, St. Mark Orthodox Church in Bethesda, MD where the couple raised their son John Michael. Col. Mikuluk retired in 1972 as executive officer of the reserve recruiting center in Rockville, Maryland. He died in 1999 at the age of 87. His honors include a Legion of Merit, Meritorious Service Medal and Army Commendation Medal.
Catherine remained an active member of St. Mark until her death in December 2020 at age 92. She is survived by her son and his fiancée, and one brother. She was predeceased by five sisters, two brothers, and her husband. She will be buried with Col. Mikuluk at Arlington National Cemetery in early 2021.
