Jim Tomalski
Pipe Shop

James S. Tomalski, a World War II Army Air Corps veteran and a long-time volunteer in the pipe shop of the SS JOHN W. BROWN, died November 14, 2008, a few days before his 82nd birthday.

Jim Tomalski served in the Army Air Corps near the end of World War II and was stationed with U.S. occupation forces in Japan when the war ended.

He had a long career as a truck driver for City Services, hauling home heating oil and gasoline. He was proud of his safe driving awards for his accident-free record. He drove the equivalent of several times around the world, all within the metropolitan Baltimore area.

He joined the BROWN in 1990, entering the empire of pipe shop boss Gene Airey. Jim was said to have named Gene "Captain Bligh" for Airey's strict work regimen. Jim was the cousin of Stan Sdanowich, who has worked in the BROWN's carpenter's shop since 1995.

Tomalski was a modest but popular volunteer who resisted being interviewed for his life's story, insisting he was not important. Fellow volunteers disagreed.

He wore a button that read, "Don't Holler at Me, I'm Just a Volunteer." There was never a need to holler at him. He also gained a measure of shipboard notoriety when he posted "The Golden Rules for Living in the BROWN Pipe Shop." Signed "James S. Tomalski, Polack in Charge," his rules are worth repeating and are listed below.

Tomalski's Golden Rules, which he posted in several places aboard ship:

• If you open it, close it.
• If you turn it on, turn it off.
• If you unlock it, lock it up.
• If you break it, admit it.
• If you can't fix it, call someone who can.
• If you borrow it, return it.
• If you value it, take care of it.
• If you make a mess, clean it up.
• If you move it, put it back.
• If it belongs to someone else, get permission to use it.
• If you don't know how to operate it, leave it alone.
• If it's none of your business, don't ask questions.

Jim Tomalski is survived by his wife of 54 years, Josephine, and a son, Michael.