Dear Kathy and family, I was so saddened to hear of the loss of your mom, Mary. My name is Kathy Oprenchak, Carol Oswald’s daughter. On behalf of my siblings, Mary, Liz, George(Misty) and myself, we want to Thank You for sharing such a wonderful woman with the parish of St. Louise. She was there for our mom during her illness a few years ago, visiting and baking goodies. Her kindness will never be forgotten.She even gave me a prayer card called Our Lady of the Smile after our mom passed away. It will always be cherished as well as her. She always spoke of you and your family. A wonderful lady. God’s blessings upon you all.

Kathy, Tom, Ann, Fred, Greg: Thinking of you during this time. Your mom made me the best meals—lettuce and carrots—in the days when that was all I liked to eat! She and my mom were close friends when our families were next-door neighbors in Naperville. This morning my brother Greg and I reflected, with gratitude, on how your mom was such a wonderful friend to our mom, all the way through her long illness and death (1979). I imagine your mom is now enjoying God’s eternal presence, and happy to be reunited with your dad, too, after all these years. Greg and I like to think she and our mom have met up again, too, renewing their friendship and perhaps doing what they loved to do together: garage-saling. I lost touch with your mom after she moved to Wisconsin and then I went to Thailand for a few years. But I’m so glad that I was able to relocate her in January 2013 and to visit with her for a few hours. That was January 29, 2013. It was an unseasonably mild and warm day, and we went out for lunch and then she showed me her photo albums that included pictures of all of you and her four grandchildren. She caught me up on each one of you. She was very proud of her grandkids. Nothing was more important to Mary than her family! I’m so glad to have known her, and I’m so grateful for the friendship that she and my mom shared. Rest in peace, Mary. Nancy Waite – Evanston, IL