Obituary: John Byrne

John “Jack” Byrne, 95, died July 16, 2017 in his home in Glenview, Ill., having said a final “I love you” to his 12 children – Mike, Tom, Jerry (Dale), Casey, Mary Pay, Eileen (Mike) Wilimzig, Kevin (Julie), Tim (Sandra), Sheila (Terry) O’Gara, Jean (Ray) Thorsen, Pat (Jeanne), Megan (Brad) Krueger – and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Jack was born Sept. 19, 1921, and raised in Chicago. During WWII he served in the Navy repairing damaged ships in the Norfolk, Virginia boat yards. He returned home, earned his BS from Illinois Institute of Technology and began working as a mechanical engineer for Pioneer Engineering and later Fluor Corporation. Jack married Geraldine “Jerry” Dillon in 1944 and together they brought up their 12 children in Evanston, Ill. In the 1980s friends introduced Jack and Jerry to Door County. When Jack retired, they purchased a home in Ellison Bay and began splitting their time between Glenview and Ellison Bay.

Jack and Jerry (deceased Sept. 5, 2008) absolutely loved their life with their friends and neighbors in Door County. He was an enthusiastic Chicago sports teams fan. Neighbors at Northbluff claim they heard Jack’s cheers from Glenview the night the Cubs won the World Series. Jack was an avid golfer, too, and played with his buddies in the Nor Door Golf League for 25 years. He was also a faithful member of Stella Maris Parish. He sincerely tried to practice what was preached and taught his children to do the same by example. He was a good husband, a good father and a good man who was blessed to live a full and satisfying life. Jack will be missed. His funeral mass was held July 20 at St. Athanasius Church in Evanston, Ill.