John A. Tanski, Jr.

John A. "Jack" Tanski Jr., 68, level-headed public servant

John A. "Jack" Tanski Jr., 68, a retired emergency services and health care worker with a reputation for keeping his cool in stressful situations, died on Monday, Dec. 14, at Albany Medical Center after a long illness. He and his wife, Barbara (Alletson) Tanski, were residents of Dalton, Massachusetts.

Born Nov. 14, 1952, in Albany, he was the son of John A. Tanski of Colonie and the late Joan M. (O'Toole) Tanski.

Jack was a 1970 graduate of Bishop Gibbons High School in Schenectady and attended Temple University in Philadelphia and Saint Joseph's College in Standish, Maine. A man of many interests and talents, he also earned a culinary arts certificate from Schenectady County Community College and a radiology certificate from Albany Memorial Hospital.

Most of Jack's career was devoted to public service. Starting in the 1970s, he began serving in both voluntary and paid capacities as an EMT, paramedic, firefighter and 911 dispatcher. An early test of his skills in high-pressure situations came on the night of March 3, 1972. He was on duty as a volunteer dispatcher when Mohawk Airlines Flight 405 crashed in a residential neighborhood as it was approaching what is now Albany International Airport, killing 17 people.

From 1983 to 2004, Jack worked as a dispatcher for the Colonie Police Department, where, among his accomplishments, he developed an innovative training program for first responders who were dealing with stress. "He was a natural dispatcher - calm, unflappable, compassionate and a great sense of humor," according to one of the many tributes that were posted on Facebook following his death. "Jack touched many lives directly and indirectly in his emergency services career."

Jack also worked as a radio DJ in both Maine and Albany and in radiology and sonography at Albany Medical Center and at Berkshire Medical Center in Pittsfield. In his later years, he also worked as a private chef, catering small events in people's homes. He retired in 2010.

He was a member of the West Albany Volunteer Department No. 1, the West Albany Emergency Relief Squad and Toastmasters International.

In addition to his wife and father, he leaves a daughter, Stephanie Buckley of Altamont, New York; two stepchildren, Norman McAfee of Averill Park, New York, and Cheryl Condon of Latham, New York; a brother, Stephen Tanski of Colonie; two sisters, Barbara Kennedy of Medford, Massachusetts, and Mary Ekland of Colonie; five grandchildren, and several nieces and nephews. He also leaves behind his beloved cat, Mickey.

Calling hours will be held on Tuesday, Dec. 22, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at New Comer Cremations and Funerals, 343 New Karner Road, Colonie, followed by private graveside services at St. Agnes Cemetery in Menands.

Donations in Jack's memory may be made to the Regional Food Bank of Northeastern New York, 965 Albany Shaker Road, Latham, NY 12110; or to Dalton Ambulance and Rescue, 20 Flansburg Ave., Dalton, MA 01226.