Obituaries

Lorraine Hartley, 88, of Crystal Lake

Visitation is 3 to 9 p.m. Friday, Oct. 5, 2012, at the Skaja Bachmann Funeral Home and from 9 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 6, until the funeral Mass at 10 am. at St. Thomas the Apostle Church.


Lorraine Hartley, 88, of Crystal Lake, passed away Monday, Oct. 1, 2012.

Lorraine was born in Chicago on April 3, 1924, to Bruno and Jeanette Sade.

She moved to Crystal Lake in 1956 with her husband, Bill, and their three daughters. They joined St. Thomas Church and school in 1958 where she was instrumental in the formation of the adult choir.

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In addition to her almost 55 years singing with the choir, she was a member of the Resurrection Choir, which began in 1991. She was a Eucharistic minister for eight years and volunteered as a wedding organizer, rehearsing the wedding party for the big day.

During her early friendship with the Dominican Sisters of St. Thomas, she enjoyed being their chauffeur and helper. That relationship with the sisters resulted in her becoming a Dominican associate, a title of which she was very proud.

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When St. Thomas held its annual summer festivals, she became the unofficial "ice cream lady," scooping up ice cream for 25 years.

She was an active member of the St. Thomas Club and St Anthony Guild, as well as Crystal Lake Senior Citizens Club. She loved her role as the "Sunshine Lady", sending get well and sympathy cards to their members, as well as planning their social events when she became VP.

To confirm her love of music, she enjoyed her 20 year participation in the Voices of Harmony, formerly known as the Crystal Lake Community Choir.

Pinochle was one of her greatest pleasures and she rarely missed a chance to play. Her name was often in the paper as top scorer. She had many hobbies including embroidery and ceramics, as well as exercise at Health Bridge. Above all, she loved to travel. She had an album for each of her 14 trips to Hawaii and almost as many to Europe. Her most recent trip was to Rome with the choir, when they had the honor to sing for the Pope.

She was an excellent cook, and because she loved being in the kitchen, almost every job she held was related to the food industry. Over the years she had many titles: she loved her early years in Crystal Lake as a waitress at Czecho Lodge, her hostess position at Turnberry Country Club, her short-order cooking skills at McDonalds for 18 years, and her 25 years as the banquet manager for Olde Town Hall. She would always coax guests onto the dance floor to join her in another one of her passions.

She retired in 2007 at the age of 83.

In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, and her brother Bruno (Sonny). She will be greatly missed by her daughters, Jan (Bill) Callahan, Karen (the late Bill) Standing, and Dawn (Greg) Sulek. She was so proud of her grandchildren, Will Callahan, Kristen (Scott) Alyn, Jason Standing, Laura (Ben) Chavez and Brian (Ashley) Standing, as well as her great grandchildren Abby, Eddie, Zachary, Ashley and Nathan.

Visitation will be from 3 to 9 p.m. Friday, Oct. 5, 2012, at the Skaja Bachmann Funeral Home, 7715 W. Route 14, Crystal Lake, and from 9 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 6, until the funeral Mass at 10 am. at St. Thomas the Apostle Church.

Interment will be at Crystal Lake Memorial Park.

In lieu of flowers, donations in her name would be appreciated to Pepper Hospice Center of Barrington 405 Lake Zurich Road Barrington, Ill., 60010, or St. Thomas Church of Crystal Lake.

Funeral information 815-455-2233




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