Susan McMahon, 62, Village secretary, dedicated grandmother
Susan McMahon could never accept extra groceries; it went against her honest nature.
On more than one occasion, she’d return home from the store to find an extra item mixed in with her purchase, probably from the person in front of her in line. But she’d never keep it, always returning to the store and trying to track down the person to make sure he or she received a refund or the missing goods.
“She didn’t want to just clear her own conscience; she wanted that person’s problem to get fixed also,” said her son, Bob McMahon, 35. “She could’ve just accepted the extra item and been happy [but] getting something extra for nothing would make my mom sad.”
McMahon, 62, a 19-year village employee and Oak Park resident for over 30 years, died Sept. 18, 2007 at Loyola Medical Center in Maywood from internal injuries suffered when she was hit by a car Sept. 16 outside her Oak Park home.
“She was a true Christian woman,” said her brother, Curtis Uthene. “On Easter, Christmas, Thanksgiving, she’d always send out beautiful Christian greeting cards. I never threw them away because they were so beautiful.”
Born in Chicago in 1945, McMahon was the second youngest of five siblings. Her father owned multiple television/radio stores and held several patents. His work kept the family moving; they also lived in Virginia. Her mother worked at the Schwinn bicycle factory, using air guns to assemble tires.
She met her husband, Robert McMahon, while they both worked at Formfit Rogers in Cicero. A secretary at the time, she married the plant manager in the early 1970s.
They lived in Forest Park briefly, before moving into an Oak Park apartment in 1973. Mr. McMahon died in 1999, but she remained at their converted condominium until her death. One of her passions was restoring the space to its original condition from the early 1900s.
Another passion was her grandchildren – Juliette, 8, and Joshua, 6 – who live in Easton, Wis. with her son and his wife. She “spoiled them rotten,” taking them go-carting and horseback riding whenever she had the chance. They were her “sugar lumps,” and she was their “Nana,” which is how they addressed every letter.
“She would never let anything stop her from being with her grandchildren,” her son said.
McMahon loved hunting for bargains and was “generous to a fault,” her brother said. Her son said she was also trusting to a fault.
“You could give her your life savings and not have any concern,” her brother said. “If you lost your wallet and she found it, you were certain to get it back; she was a real angel.”
Her son speculated that she would have retired in the next two or three years, saying he wouldn’t have let her work past 65.
“She wasn’t ready to let go [of her job],” he said.
In addition to her son, grandchildren and brother, McMahon is also survived by her siblings, Paul and Clifford Uthene and her sister, Jeanette Frederick.
A wake and funeral service were held last Friday and Saturday at Joseph Nosek & Sons Funeral Home in Berwyn.
Donations can be made in Susan McMahon’s name to the diabetes charity of your choice; the disease has affected her grandson, Joshua, since he was 3.
–Marty Stempniak
Alfred Dransoff, Sr., 83, American Airlines crew chief
Alfred J. Dransoff, Sr., 83, of Plano formerly of Oak Park, died on Sept. 10, 2007 at his home. Born on April 4, 1924 in Chicago, the son of Ralph and Alice M. (White) Dransoff, he married Rosemarie Junius on May 30, 1951 in Chicago and was a veteran of the U.S. Army, serving during World War II. Employed by American Airlines for 35 years as a crew chief, he was a member of St. Mary Catholic Church in Plano and the American Airlines Three Diamonds Society.
A caring, compassionate man who loved to listen to the Big Bands at the American Legion in Yorkville, he enjoyed a good cigar and making others laugh. His friends and family say his sense of humor will be missed.
Alfred Dransoff is survived by his wife, Rosemarie Dransoff; his 12 children, Christopher (Lynn) Dransoff, Rita (Steve) Roser, Marcella (Jan) Stachura, Annette Wojcik, Alice (James) Sury, Ralph (Andrea) Dransoff, Jean (Rex) Budwig, Alfred (Tara) Dransoff, Jr., Mary (David) Wenzel, Abigail (Edwin) Hackett, Victoria Dransoff, and Thomas (Rebecca) Dransoff; 17 grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents and one sister and brother-in-law, Evelyn (Robert) Petit.
Visitation with a rosary service was held Sept. 13 at Turner-Eighner Funeral Home, 3952 Turner Ave., Plano. Funeral Mass was celebrated Sept. 14 at St. Mary Catholic Church in Plano, Rev. Dan Cambra officiating. Memorials may be directed to the St. Mary Catholic Church Building Fund. For further information or to sign the online guest book, go to www.TurnerBurkhartFH.com
John Bowman, 82, CPA, WWII P.O.W. survivor
Former Oak Parker and Fenwick High graduate John H. (Jake) Bowman, 82, died Sept. 17, 2007 at the North Chicago V.A. nursing center of complications from circulatory problems.
Jake Bowman was a World War II veteran. On his 30th mission with the 8th Air Force as a tail gunner, he bailed out of his B-17 Flying Fortress bomber over Germany on Nov. 21, 1944, half-conscious and bleeding, his parachute unopened. Heading for certain death, he somehow got the chute open. As he fell, he looked up and saw his crew mates floating down, he told the Lake County News-Sun in 2003. He was 19.
On the ground, they were met by the local volkssturm, or people’s army, enraged at the bombing, but a regular soldier home on leave took him in tow, bandaged his wounds, and got him to the authorities. He was a prisoner until early May, 1945, when Russian troops liberated his stalag prison camp.
A resident of northwest suburban Gurnee since the early 1990s, he grew up in Chicago’s Austin neighborhood and in Oak Park, attending St. Angela School and St. Philip and Fenwick high schools before entering the service. He lived in Oak Park at 1033 N. Humphrey and later at 316 and 312 S. Lombard, and was a member of St. Catherine of Siena Parish. After the war, he attended Loyola University-Chicago and was a member of Alpha Delta Gamma fraternity.
Mr. Bowman became a CPA, working in private practice from the 1970s after leaving Hackett Corp. for Woods & Smith (later Woods, Mucker, Bowman & Kilmurray). In the mid-1980s, he went on his own.
He left his widow Lynne Hemstreet Bowman; his sons, Dan and Mark; his brother Jim Bowman; his sister, Mary Clare Penney; four grandchildren; a great-grandchild; three step-children; and eight step-grandchildren. He and Lynne were married 23 years. Bowman’s first wife, Oak Parker Joan Hayes Bowman, died in 1980.
Bowman was buried Saturday out of St. Paul the Apostle Church, Gurnee.
Frank Vercillo, 77, Professional landscaper
Frank J. Vercillo, 77, of Bellwood, formerly of Oak Park, died on Sept. 15, 2007 at Westlake Hospital. A professional landscaper, he owned Vercillo Landscaping Co. for many years with clients in the Oak Park-River Forest area. He is a veteran of the U.S. Navy.
Mr. Vercillo was the husband of the late Janet; the father of Natalie (Steven) Early, Leslie (Bill) Bird, and Christine Vercillo; the son of Rose and the late Sam Vercillo; and the grandfather of four.
Visitation was held Sept. 19 at Hursen Funeral Home in Hillside. Funeral Mass was celebrated at Sacred Heart Church on Sept. 20, followed by interment at Queen of Heaven Cemetery.
Rudolph Kara, 79, Real estate agent, Korean vet
Rudolph F. Kara, 79, of Rockford, died at home on Sept. 17, 2007. Born on June 6, 1928 in Cicero to Frank and Anna (Honus) Kara, he was a Marine in the Korean War, then became a real estate agent and a member of the American Legion.
He is survived by his wife, Susan; his son, Michael (Patty) Kara; his stepson, Ian Coburn; his step-daughters, Janice Coburn of Oak Park and Nicole (Bryan) Malenius; his seven grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.
Services were private. Condolences may be sent to www.ketchamripleyfh@embarqmail.com. Arrangements were handled by Ketcham-Ripley Funeral Home.
Mary Miller, 87, Manufacturing clerk
Mary T. Miller, 87, of LaGrange Park, formerly of Oak Park, died at home on Sept. 4, 2007. Born on Aug. 15, 1920, she worked as a clerk in the manufacturing field.
Mrs. Miller was the wife of the late Edward Blinkal, Harvey Erbs, and Russell Miller; daughter of the late Margaret and Vincent Manor; mother of Kenneth (Suzanne) and Richard F. Blinkal; grandmother of Frank and Kevin Blinkal and Patricia McNeese; and great-grandmother of 4.
A graveside service was held on Sept. 7 at Oakridge Cemetery in Hillside, Rev. Fred Tomzik presiding.
–Compiled by Ken Trainor