Clifford Machacek

Clifford “Chief” Machacek, 96, of St. Joseph, passed away, Wednesday, July 27, 2016 at Hanson Hospice Center in Stevensville. A Celebration of Life Service will be held 11:00 A.M. Monday at Trinity Lutheran Church, Court & Market St., St. Joseph, with Rev. Michael Roth officiating.  Burial will follow at Riverview Cemetery, St. Joseph, with graveside military rites conducted by the North Berrien Military Rites Team.  Friends may visit with the family from 2:00 until 5:00 P.M. Sunday at Starks & Menchinger Chapel, 2650 Niles Rd., St. Joseph.  In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Trinity Lutheran Church, Trinity Lutheran School or the Berrien County Youth Fair.  Those wishing to sign Cliff’s Memory Book online may do so at www.starks-menchinger.com. Cliff was born May 21, 1920 in Lesterville, South Dakota to John & Rose (Smejkel) Machacek.  He served his country during WWII in the US Army Air Corps., flying twenty-nine missions over Europe as lead navigator in a B-24 Liberator, retiring at the rank of Major from the U.S. Air Force Reserve in 1967.  On July 7, 1946, he married the former Ruth Damaske in St. Joseph at Trinity Lutheran Church.  Cliff attended Michigan State University, graduating in 1950.  Cliff went on to complete his Masters degree in Agriculture in 1955.  In 1951 Cliff was hired by Benton Harbor High School where he spent the next thirty-six years teaching science and vocational agriculture.  Throughout his tenure, Cliff was well respected and admired by his fellow teachers and students, earning him the nickname of “Chief”.  After retiring from teaching in 1987, Mr. Machacek continued to stay active in the community.  Clifford served as the superintendent of the Berrien County Youth Fair Horticulture building for over twenty years.  Cliff was a member of Trinity Lutheran Church where he served on numerous boards for both the church and school and most recently was a member of the Man to Man organization.  He was a member of Benton Harbor Federation of Teachers, Michigan Federation of Teachers and the American Federation of Teachers.  As the vocational agriculture teacher, he was the Advisor for the Future Farmers of America-Benton Harbor Chapter #71.  Cliff was a member of the St Joseph township board, which was responsible for the creation of Eaton Park for North Lincoln Baseball. Cliff is survived by his children-Steven (Shelley) Machacek of Northville, MI, Gary Machacek of Benton Harbor, James (Tina) Machacek of St. Joseph, Cheryl Machacek of Schwenksville, PA, Joann (husband-Sean Chayer) Machacek of Coloma; seven grandchildren-Amy (Garrett) Smith, Alison (Daniel) Webster, Lindsey (Silvio) Barile, Jonathan & Thomas Machacek, Andrew & Ashley Machacek; three great-grandchildren-Jacob & Braden Smith, Mackenzie Webster; a sister Lillian (Glen) Tinker of Berrien Springs, and numerous nieces and nephews.  He was preceded in death by his wife Ruth on February 5, 2003.