Mr. John Joseph Guldner, 85, of Wake Forest, NC peacefully passed away on October 18, 2021. He was born in Bronx, NY on October 12, 1936, son of the late John and Margaret Guldner.

John attended All Hallows High School in the Bronx and then graduated from Kings Point Merchant Marine Academy with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering. For almost 25 years, John contributed to our nation’s space exploration and national defense programs working for Grumman Aerospace Corporation. His two most notable projects included the NASA Apollo program’s Lunar Module and the US Navy F-14 Tomcat fighter jet. John continued his career ultimately retiring from a position as a Facilities Engineer from Columbia University in New York City.

John married Carole DeMeloitz on January 14, 1961, and celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary earlier this year. John and Carole enjoyed travel, and raising their family on Long Island, NY from where John enjoyed sailing, fishing and outings to the beach with their children. Later in life, they enjoyed Carole’s “dream trip” to Japan, where they toured Tokyo and Kyoto, visiting with family and friends.

John, with his natural mechanical inclination, was known to be able to fix just about anything. He performed just about all the maintenance on his home, appliances and automobiles, leading his family to follow in his footsteps by being fairly “mechanically independent.” He even installed his own home solar heating system in the 1970’s before solar energy was en vogue.

He was preceded in death by his parents; one brother, Bob Guldner; and two sisters, Ruth Sally and Catherine (Dick) Baker. John is survived by his wife, Carole; his daughter, Deborah (Tom) Lindsey of Wake Forest, NC; his sons, Christopher (Mary) Guldner of Cobleskill, NY and Michael Guldner of San Jose, CA; grandchildren, Joshua Lindsey of Wake Forest, NC, Nicholas (Jessica) Guldner of Deer Park, NY, Jessica (Hannah) Lindsey of Wake Forest, NC, Kevin (Airi) Guldner currently stationed in Japan, Rose Guldner of Boston, MA, Sarah Guldner of Sarasota, FL, Lauren Guldner of Queens, NY, Isaiah Lindsey of Wake Forest, NC, Jordan Guldner of San Jose, CA and four great-grandchildren. He is also survived by two siblings, Fran (Tom) Cramer of Roswell, GA and Tom (Donna) Guldner of Boynton Beach, FL, as well as nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.

A Mass will be held for John at Saint Luke the Evangelist Catholic Church in Raleigh, NC on Tuesday, November 16, 2021 at 11:00 AM. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in memory of John to Birthright of Nanuet .

The family is especially grateful to the entire staff at WakeMed Raleigh Campus hospital who provided amazingly compassionate care for John in the last weeks of his life.