Alexander Bill Nyilas of Palm Coast, Florida, at 85 years old, passed away peacefully on October 10, 2020 surrounded by his loving family.
Alexander was born on July 31, 1935 in NY, NY. He and his family returned to Hungary, where he spent the early part of his childhood, until the family moved to back to the United States in 1939. His family moved to Astoria, Queens.
Alexander is predeceased by his parents, Alexander and Grace, as well as two older sisters, Joan and Grace. Alex is predeceased by his wife Ann Nyilas, and is survived by his wife Priscilla Nyilas as well as his children, Laura (Conrad), Kathy (John), and Alex (Lynn), three step children, Alison, Jeff (Grace), and pre-deceased by his step son Larry (Judi). He is also survived by 14 grandchildren as well as 23 Great-Grandchildren.
Alex or Al as he was known to his family and friends, served in the United States Navy from 1952-1957 during the Korean War as an Air Crewman in the Atlantic. He remained in the Naval Reserves until 1960. He served on the CV-45 USS Valley Forge, CV-32 USS Leyte, CV-36 USS Antietam, and CV-40 USS Tarawa. He was a member of Squadron 39, known as the “Hoot Owls”. Al was based out of Brooklyn, NY as well as Quonset Point, Rhode Island. He flew as an airman in the Grumman S2A Tracker Anti-Submarine Squadron and also the consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateer, a type of Patrol Bomber.
Alex also had a long career working for the NYC Transit Authority as a Superintendent of Subways. He made the long commute each day from Smithtown to the Bronx, City Island as well Brooklyn before retiring in 1991.
Al had a love of the water throughout his lifetime. He enjoyed recreational boating with his family and took many trips on the Long Island Sound as well as Eaton’s Neck, Martha’s Vineyard, Nantucket, Block Island, Newport, and Shelter Island.
Al was very proud of his Magyar (Hungarian) heritage. He would share stories about growing up in Hungary, the food, culture, and meaning of the Nyilas name with his children and grandchildren.
Al will always be remembered for his personal “Happy Birthday” songs shared with his family on their birthdays. He was a loving and supportive husband, father, and grandfather.
His biggest joy in life, was the time that he spent with his family.
In Lieu of Flowers, donations can be made to the American Cancer Society for Patient Services.
American Cancer Society
PO Box 22718
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73123
Memo line: Restrict to Patient Services
Mention: In memory of Alexander B Nyilas c/o Alex Nyilas 3105 Little Neck Rd Cutchogue NY 11935