St. Thomas Aquinas Parish, Chicago, Illinois

In Memoriam - James F. Fitzgerald

2020-07-27T18:51:00.000-05:00

James Fitzgerald 1946 - 2017

Image from 1960 St. Thomas Aquinas class photo

James F. Fitzgerald, "Fitz," age 70, of Schaumburg and formerly of Chicago. Loving husband of Judith (nee Millaney). Devoted father of Lynn (Patrick) McElhone and Clare (Peter Bower). Proud grandfather of Jack, Katherine, Maura and Kevin McElhone. Beloved son of the late Gerald and the late Katherine. Fond brother of the late Robert. Cherished cousin of the Murphys and Brennans. Jim went from his first job cutting grass on the Columbus Park golf course on Chicago's West Side to a successful career in commercial insurance. He was a lover of a round of golf at St. Andrews, an afternoon with the horses at Arlington Park, and fun times with family and friends at Sabatino's, the Wellington, and Palm Court. Note to Jack Hurley: Jack, Thanks for all the lunches-Fitz.

Memorial visitation Thursday, July 20 at Ahlgrim and Sons Funeral Home, 330 W. Golf Road, Schaumburg, from 3:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Family and friends gather for funeral mass Friday, July 21 at 10:00 a.m. at St. Matthew Parish, 1001 E. Schaumburg Road, Schaumburg. Private interment at St. Michael the Archangel Cemetery at later date. In lieu of flowers, donations to Misericordia (www.misericordia.com) appreciated.

Published in a Chicago Tribune Media Group Publication on July 19, 2017

In Memoriam - Donald A. Rio

2020-07-26T19:34:00.004-05:00

Donald Rio, 1946-2019

Donald Anthony Rio was born on May 17, 1946, in Chicago. His parents were Frank and Dora Rio. In the late 60s, Don began dating Patricia Camasto, and they married in 1970. Not long after, he graduated from Northern Illinois University with a Master's degree in psychology.

Mr. Rio had a long and impressive career, caring for people who suffer from mental illness. He also taught classes at several universities, and had a private practice in Lombard, IL, The Midwest Counseling Center. At his practice, Mr. Rio worked as a drug and alcohol counselor, and also a marriage counselor. Later in his career he wrote a psychology book titled, *Fire in the Heart*.

Don was a well respected member of his community and was an inspiration for many people. He loved to laugh and make people laugh. Don had a big heart; he was always there if you needed him. Positive thinking and passion for life were his trademarks.

Source: Online - https://everloved.com/life-of/donald-rio/obituary/

1968 Class 50th Reunion

2018-11-06T11:03:00.002-06:00

Thanks to Diane Callahan Mastny for posting the great photos from STA's 1968 50th Reunion at Hackney's earlier this month.

Also, a Memorial Mass will be said for those 1968 STA graduates who are no longer with us. A "Remembrance" Mass is planned on Sunday, June 9, 2019 at Old St. Pat's Church at Des Plaines and Adams at 11:00 a.m. Plan to attend.

Thanks, again, Diane for sharing the information on your 50th reunion gathering.

Founding of STA Mother's Club, 1935

2018-07-01T19:50:00.002-05:00

Thanks to Dan Carr, class of 1960, for spotting this article on the front page of the December 26, 1935 Garfieldian newspaper. He was actually researching information on his Grandmother whose obituary also appears on the front page of this paper. You never know where you will find information!

Thanks, Dan!

Mural Behind Altar - Updated January 2, 2019

2018-01-02T16:00:00.000-06:00

c1990 prior to becoming St. Martin de Porres

This photo of the mural behind the altar at St. Thomas Aquinas Church was provided by Patrick T. Reardon, Class of 1963. The mural was a copy of The Apotheosis [glorification] of St. Thomas Aquinas by the Spanish Renaissance master, Zurbaran.

It seems since the Church was re-dedicated to St. Martin de Porres in February 1992, it didn't make much sense to have the huge mural to St. Thomas Aquinas behind the altar.

Pictured above is Rev. Thomas Libera, Pastor c1988-c1995. Thanks to Barbara Vina for identifying him.

Pat, thanks for sharing the photo.

Additional information on the painting behind the altar. Patrick Reardon posted on Facebook on January 2, 2014 (and re-posted on January 2, 2019) the following:

"At St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Austin on Chicago's Far West Side, there was a painting behind the altar that was modeled on one by a somewhat famous Spaniard, Francisco Zubaran. Here is Zubaran's image on the left and the STA image on the right. BTW, to curry favor with the pastor, Msgr. William Long, the painter put Long's face on the guy in front of the group on the left in the lowest level. He also painted Long's face as St. William in another part of the church."

Thanks Patrick for sharing the additional information.

1936 Graduation Booklet 1 of 2

2017-02-16T15:57:00.000-06:00

Another wonderful booklet from the past of St. Thomas Aquinas. More than 80 years ago, the graduates of 1936 were pictured in this graduation booklet. Thank you to Marilyn Segerson (Class of 1968) for the document and to Bill Pappas (Class of 1968) for sending the scanned copy. To enlarge, double click on image.

Continued on next blog post.

1936 Graduation Booklet 2 of 2

2017-02-16T15:55:00.000-06:00

1936 Graduation Booklet Continued from previous post.

Thank you Marilyn Segerson and Bill Pappas for continuing to build our past!

1966 STA Annual Dance and Turkey Raffle Program 1 of 3

2017-02-15T11:00:00.003-06:00

Thanks to Bill Pappas (class of 1968) for this treasure. The program lists many names and businesses we will all recognize. Such fond memories. The post is broken into 3 sections to accommodate all of the images. Double click on the images to enlarge. (The original images were cropped a little close to the edge, but you can get the gist of what is written.) Thanks again, Bill for digitizing this booklet.

Booklet continues in next post.

1966 STA Annual Dance and Turkey Raffle Program 2 of 3

2017-02-15T10:58:00.000-06:00

Booklet continues:

Continues on next post.

1966 STA Annual Dance and Turkey Raffle Program 3 of 3

2017-02-15T10:56:00.000-06:00

Pamphlet contents continues from previous post.

End of pamphlet images.

Again, thanks to Bill Pappas for sharing this wonderful treasure from 1966.

Siena High School 2016 Bi-Annual Reunion Announced

2016-07-21T19:54:00.001-05:00

Many of our female STA graduates attended Siena High School. In case you haven't received the 2016 Reunion information -- here it is!

Source: Email received July 20, 2016

Church Interior is Recognized by Granddaughter of Artist

2016-03-22T14:44:00.001-05:00

http://johnamallin.com

The artwork, so beautifully captured by Dan Carr (Class of 1960) in his photos, of the interior of St. Thomas Aquinas/St. Martin de Porres Church is the subject of a wonderful website honoring the artist responsible for the design and execution in the early 1950s.

Kathy Mallin, granddaughter of John A. Mallin, notes on her website her grandfather was responsible for decorating more than 100 churches, many of them in the Chicagoland area. Patrick Reardon (Class of 1963) provided some of the history of the Church for the section on St. Thomas Aquinas.

To read more about the artist. as well as a little history of St. Thomas Aquinas, take a moment to view the website at http://johnamallin.com/

Thank you, Kathy Mallin, for sharing your wonderful research with us.

Image: Opening page of the John A Mallin website

Grade 7, February 1938 - Class Photo

2016-03-17T21:30:00.001-05:00

Class of 1939

Diane Hallinan, Class of 1960, shared this wonderful photo from 1938. Her mother, Adele Boutet, is on the end, left, second row. Her Mom's sister, Ethel Boutet, is next to her in the white sweater. Seated with the x on her (front row, far right) is Bernice Hallinan. Top x (back row, third from the right) is Marion Hallinan. Diane's mother married the Hallinan sisters' brother in 1943.

Small world!!

They were separating the boys and girls in 7th grade as early as 1938. And, managing to teach 46 adolescents girls all in one class.

Thanks, Diane for sharing this wonderful photo.

Siena High School Reunion 2016 - Save the Date

2016-02-20T15:36:00.001-06:00

For all the STA women who attended Siena High School

Siena High School All-Class Reunion

Saturday, September 24, 2016

The reunion luncheon will be held at Venuti's Ristorante & Banquet Hall, Addison, IL.

Reservation materials will be sent in mid-July.

In the meantime, please help us find our Siena classmates.

Please send address changes to:

Siena All Class Reunion

Jacky Caronia Alpert

P.O. Box 7074

Deerfield, IL 60015

AllSienaReunion@gmail.com

Special years:

75^th 1941 ** 70^th 1946 ** 65^th 1951 ** 60^th 1956

55^th 1961 ** 50^th 1966 ** 45^th 1971 **40^th 1974

Source: Email February 20, 2016

Graduating Class of 1971

2016-02-18T21:38:00.001-06:00

A note from Darlene Coleman Cox to the Class of 1971:

I miss STA, plus the fun times we all had together with Mr. Cook, our Teacher. I wish to get some school records because my house got burned and lots of my things got mess up in the fire. I found this picture over web! You're guys made my Day! Happy Valentine's to all my buddies! Miss you're all! Darlene (Chatter box) - that's what you called me in school! Smiling! See y'all

Darlene would love to hear from her classmates and possibly plan a reunion. Please contact her
at: 1-662-854-1517

Thank you Darlene for sharing this photo and your comments.

In Memoriam - Patrick Arloff

2015-12-11T19:59:00.000-06:00

We were saddened to learn of the death last month of Pat Arloff, Class of 1960.

Patrick J. Arloff, 68, U.S. Air Force, Vietnam Veteran, born in Oak Park, IL on 12/17/1946, suddenly passed on 11/18/2015; loving father of Paul (Serena) Sauer, David Sauer and Kathleen Huttner; grandfather of Julianne, Katherine and Matthew Sauer, Joseph, Christina and David Sauer, and Michael Huttner; son of the late Leo & Rose Arloff; caring cousin and fond friend of many; Alumnus of St. Ignatius H.S. and Northwestern University; Passionate Traveler, Writer and Philosopher. Memorial Visitation, Sat. 12/12/15 from 11AM until 1PM at Drake & Son Funeral Home, 5303 N. Western, Chicago; 2PM Celebration of Life Gathering at Hopleaf, 5148 N. Clark, Chicago; Inurnment, Queen of Heaven Cemetery, Hillside, IL.

To sign Patrick's online guestbook and view his MeM Video Tribute, go to www.DrakeandSonFuneralHome.com. It is a lovely video.

Source: Chicago Tribune Media Group Publication from Nov. 29 to Dec. 6, 2015- See more at: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/chicagotribune/obituary.aspx?pid=176691751#sthash.cFeh9zXU.dpuf

Class of 1965 50th Reunion

2015-11-25T21:39:00.003-06:00

On October 24th, 28 members of the St. Thomas Aquinas Class of 1965 met at Brian Boru's in Forest Park to celebrate the 50th anniversary of their graduation. Old friendships were rekindled, and it seems like a good time was had by all. Pictures and memorabilia brought back memories of a different era. Conversation flowed and a lot of "catching up" was done. Hard to believe that 50 years had passed!

Photo and write up courtesy: Mary Ann Whalen, Class of 1965

Photos from Class of 1960's 55th Reunion

2015-10-17T18:03:00.003-05:00

Dan Carr does it again. A great group of photos from the Class of 1960's lunch gathering at Irish Times on October 16. For a quick look at all 81 of the photos, click here. If you would like to view each photo individually and you are on your laptop or desktop, here is the link to Dan's photos on Flickr.

Dan provides the following information: You get a full-screen looping slideshow if you visit the album (first link above) and click the arrow-in-a-screen icon at the top of the page. The 81 photos comprise more than half a gigabyte of data. Anyone can access large size versions of any or all the photos by clicking the downward pointing arrow in the lower right hand corner of each photo's 'home page.'

Or, just click on the photo below and start the show!

Thanks, Dan, for so wonderfully capturing a great afternoon.

Class of 1960 Plus 55 years

2015-10-16T19:25:00.000-05:00

Class of 1960 Lunch Gathering

Irish Times

Brookfield, Illinois

October 16, 2015

Photo taken before our last colleague arrived, but in the photos to come, her face will be revealed. We were also lucky to have a Class of 1959 alum join us. Once the pictures are "cleaned up" there will be more posted.

Photo courtesy: Dan Carr

In Memoriam - Charles Dutra

2015-10-16T09:20:00.001-05:00

As we prepared to celebrate a gathering of the Class of 1960, we were saddened to learn of Chuck's passing in 2013.

Charles E Dutra
(December 28, 1945 - January 22, 2013)

U.S. Veteran Charles E. Dutra, 67 of Tomah died, Tuesday, January 22, 2013 at the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Tomah. He was born on December 28, 1945 to George and Lucy (O’Malley) Dutra in Chicago, IL. He was a member of the Austin High School Graduating Class of 1964.

Growing up he worked as a life guard on Lake Michigan’s beaches. He was a U.S. Army Veteran. He was united in marriage to Eunice Deer. He was united in marriage to Eileen Straszewski on March 17, 2005 at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Tomah. He worked for Burlington Northern Railways as an engineer operator and as an electrician. He always had curious appetite for learning about the infrastructure of the railways. He enjoyed fishing and eagle watching. He was an avid Notre Dame and Chicago Bears fan.

He is survived by his wife Eileen of Tomah, 2 daughters Theresa (Patrick) Kittle and Angela (Patrick) Jacobs both of South, Beloit, IL, a step-daughter Diana Lyons of Richmond, VA, 5 children, Logan Kittle, Madeline and Abagail Jacobs, Linda and Andrea Dick, a sister Mary Dutra of Woodbury, MN, 2 brothers James (Sheila) Dutra of Chicago, IL, and George (Pat) Dutra of Minnetonka, MN, nieces, nephews, and other relatives and friends. He was preceded in death by his parents.

A Memorial Service will be held on Friday, February 1, 2013, 11:00 A.M. at the Sonnenburg Family Funeral Home. Rev. Kathleen Charles will officiate. Relatives and friends are invited to call on Friday from 10:00 A.M. until the time of the service. A Memorial Service will be held on Saturday, February 2, 2013, 11:00 A.M. at St. Paul Episcopal Church, 212 West Grand Ave, Beloit, WI. Rev. Gail Abbott will officiate. Burial will be at a later date in Woodbury, MN. The family requests that memorial be given to the American Cancer Society or the Tomah Hospice Touch in memory of Charles.

Online condolences may be given at www.sonnenburgfamilyfh.com

Photo: Elaine McIntyre Beaudoin, 2010

Class of 1965 - 50th Reunion - October 24, 2015

2015-09-20T19:24:00.000-05:00

Class of 1965 - 50th Reunion

The St. Thomas Aquinas School Class of 1965 is celebrating the 50th anniversary of our graduation. The reunion is at Brian Boru's, 7800 W. Madison, Forest Park, IL on October 24, 2015 at 6:00 p.m. $20 for appetizers, coffee and desserts. Cash bar.

Our response for attendance has exceeded our expectations! We would be so happy to connect with more of our classmates with whom we have lost touch. If you can help us "find" any if these names, we would greatly appreciate it!

For more information about how to attend the reunion and where to send your RSVP, please contact Mary Ann (Whalen) Kadow at maryannkadow@gmail.com.

We have extended the response date to October 5, but need to finalize with the venue soon after that date, so please let us know if you plan to attend. Open to friends, spouses, and significant others of the Class of 1965 also!

Can you help us connect to these classmates from 1965?

Paul Alvarez

Maureen Berg

Janice Brady Coleman

Michael Burke

William Casey

Albert Colombini

Richard Commito

Mary Ann Conway

Susan Cox

Carol Cravatta

Ann Griffin

Michael Guseilla

Barbara Jones

John Jones

William Jones

Susan LaMarche

Jeanne Lee

Andrew Lentine

William Ludan

Robert Manor

John Marynczak

Patricia Mazzie

Thomas Monick

Thomas Nallen

Diane Nilson

Denise Powers

William Richards

Linda Serra

Janet Shepler

Sonia Tirado

Information provided by Mary Ann Whalen Kadow , September 20, 2015

Class of 1960 Lunch Gathering - October 16

2015-08-31T19:40:00.000-05:00

The Class of 1960 lunch gathering is less than 7 weeks away. Having tried out the food at the Irish Times last week, I can say you will enjoy the lunch.

A small room has been made available for our gathering.

If you haven't already, please RSVP to elaine.beaudoin@gmail.com

Class of 1960 Lunch Gathering

Friday, October 16, 2015, 11:30 a.m.

Irish Times

8869 Burlington Avenue

Brookfield, Illinois

irishtimespub.com

In Memoriam - Joan Nallen Blasi

2015-08-20T13:54:00.000-05:00

Joan Nallen Blasi, 1945-2015

It is with sadness we learned of our 1960 Classmate Joan Nallen Blasi's death this month. Her daughter provided this link to Joan's memorial page at the funeral home's website where you may leave a message in the guestbook.

http://www.ahlgrimfunerals.com/sitemaker/memsol.cgi?page=services&user_id=1641484

May Joan rest in peace.

Joan joined other classmates at our 25th reunion in 1985

Photos: 1960, Dan Carr; 1985, Elaine McIntyre Beaudoin

Class of 1960 - 55th Reunion Luncheon

2015-08-12T19:59:00.000-05:00

Can you believe it has been 55 years since we graduated?

Join us as we celebrate our years at St. Tommy's and raise a glass to those who are no longer with us.

Date: Friday, October 16, 2015

Time: 11:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Place: Irish Times, 8869 Burlington Ave, Brookfield, IL 60513

Guests are welcome; separate checks will be provided.

RSVP: elaine.beaudoin@gmail.com by October 9.

Please share the invitation with other Class of 1960 classmates.

Hope you can make it.

Were you born at Loretto Hospital?

2015-08-10T13:51:00.001-05:00

Loretto Hospital would love to hear from you!

If you wish to attend, call 773-854-5063 or email to external.affairs@lorettohospital.org for an RSVP card. Or, download this response card and send it in. Please put Janice Henry's name on the response card. She can be reached at 773-879-6182. Janice Henry RN, Community Health Nurse, Loretto Hospital.

It looks like it will be a fun day.

Source: Janice Henry, St. Martin de Porres church, email August 9, 2015.