Jeanne Quinn, 64, promoted ethics in government
Jeanne Quinn and her husband, Paul, already had three children when Jeanne’s parents got divorced, and her mother and Jeanne’s five siblings moved into their Oak Park home.
“We went from a family of five to 11 overnight,” recalled Quinn’s daughter, Jennifer Beil. “But it was done in a very democratic way. We had family meetings to keep a sense of order, and everyone had his say. It fit right in with her political interests. It was fair and a great way to grow up.”
Jeanne Quinn, 64, of Grand Rapids, Mich., formerly of Oak Park, died on Aug. 8, 2009, of metastatic breast cancer.
She had many talents and interests. In the early to mid-1970s, she was a writer, photographer and editor of the Village Economist newspaper, which led to a life of increased community involvement. From 1978-82, she served on the local League of Women Voters board and was first vice president of the Lone Tree Area Girl Scout Council from 1980-82. She was also her daughter’s troop leader.
In 1978, she took a crack at politics, running for Congress against Henry Hyde and losing. In 1982, she became the first Democrat from the suburbs in a half century to win a seat on the Cook County board. Her top priority was transparency and ethics in government, and she sponsored the County board’s first ethics ordinance.
“There were a lot of uphill battles,” Beil recalled. “It was a real struggle, but she believed things could change if you had a lot of people pushing for it.”
She never gave up on politics, Beil said, but in 1986, after challenging Stanley Kusper for Cook County clerk and losing, she went in a different direction, joining the faculty of Roosevelt University, where she taught classes in public administration from 1986-91 and 1995-99.
“She had a way of making what seemed boring on the surface quite interesting,” Beil said. She also wrote articles on government ethics for the Chicago Metro Ethics Coalition.
From 1991-95, she was appointed director of elections by County Clerk David Orr.
And from 1985-92, she and her husband ran Kitchen Werks at 728 Lake St. (where Velvet Rope is now located), which boasted a whole wall of kitchen gadgets, including a “kick-ass garlic press.”
“I’m amazed by all she did,” Beil said. An artist, she entered a Suburban Bank contest and placed. She specialized in scissors-cutting, Beil recalled, donating her silhouettes to Montessori fundraisers. She acted in several Village Players’ productions, including A Christmas Carol.
“She could sing and play guitar,” Beil said. “She didn’t limit herself. She taught us to take advantage of the skills you have. It was a difficult example to follow with as much as she had going on. She always had a positive outlook on everything. After years in government, that’s pretty hard to maintain.”
Jeanne Quinn is survived by her husband, Paul; her daughters Jennifer Beil and Sarah Burke; her son, Chris; and three grandchildren.
Visitation will be held at 10 a.m., Aug. 21, at St. Edmund Church. Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 11 a.m.
-Ken Trainor
Jeanne Kass, 90, Worked in public relations
Jeanne Carroll Kass, 90, of Western Springs, formerly of Oak Park, died on Aug. 10, 2009 at home. Born in Oak Park and raised in River Forest, she attended Trinity and Oak Park and River Forest high schools. After studying at the London School of Economics in the 1940s, she lived in New York and even appeared on Broadway as a dancer in Brigadoon. She also worked as an editor for Charm, a fashion magazine.
After moving back to the Oak Park area, she did public relations work for Oak Park Hospital and Rosary College (now Dominican University). She married Harold Kass, an Oak Park physician with offices in the Medical Arts Building, which Mrs. Kass helped manage until they retired in 1993. She enjoyed hosting fundraisers and entertaining.
In addition to her husband, Jeanne Kass is survived by two stepsons, Michael and Andrew; six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
Bob Bresnahan, 87, Candy broker
Dennis Robert “Bob” Bresnahan, 87, of Oak Park, died on Aug. 10, 2009 following a stroke while on vacation. Born and raised on Chicago’s South Side, he graduated from Calumet High School, where he met his wife of 62 years, Mary Rita.
He served for four years with the Army Air Forces in the South Pacific during World War II, then worked as an elevator operator at Hyde Park Hotel. He became a sales representative for several Chicago-area confectionary companies, then founded Bresnahan and Thomas, a confectionary brokerage.
In 1987, the company was purchased by Professional Marketers, Inc. and he continued to work there as manager of the confectionery department until he retired in 1994.
In addition to his wife, Bob Bresnahan is survived by his eight sons, Tim, Dennis, John, Patrick, William, Robert, Neil and Joseph; his sister, Marion Melko; 21 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Funeral Mass was celebrated Aug. 15 at St. Bernardine Catholic Church in Forest Park.
Donald Thompson, 63
Donald Thompson, 63, of Oak Park, died on Aug. 16, 2009. He was the husband of Nadine A. (nee Strahle); the father of Donald and Zachary; the brother of Susan (Robert) Drane, Nancy Jackson, Michael (Mary Ann), Mary, Craig, Patricia (John) Harvey, Dennis, James (Diane) and Joan (the late John) Backes; the uncle of many; and the son of the late Donald and Joan (nee Horan) Thompson.
Visitation will take place Wednesday, Aug. 19, from 3 to 9 p.m. at Drechsler, Brown & Williams Funeral Home, 203 S. Marion St., Oak Park. Friends are asked to meet at St. Catherine of Siena/St. Lucy Church, 38 N. Austin Blvd., Oak Park on Thursday for the funeral Mass at 11 a.m., followed by interment at Mt. Olive Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, memorials to Misericordia are appreciated.
Mary Ruth Lumkes, 74, Needlepoint expert,
champion dog breeder
Mary Ruth Lumkes (nee McCain), 74, of Bellingham, Wash., a resident of Oak Park for more than 40 years, died on Aug. 12, 2009. Born on April 21, 1935 in Oak Park, she graduated from Oak Park and River Forest High School in 1953 and attended Lake Forest College.
In 1955 she married her first husband, Thomas Felgen and they raised two daughters, Carol and Victoria, on Woodbine Avenue. Mary, or “MR” as she was known back then by her friends, had many talents and pursued several interests, including knitting, needlepoint and showing and breeding champion Afghan hounds. In the 1970s she owned and operated a needlepoint shop in Algonquin, where she taught classes and designed custom needlepoint. She worked for a time in member services at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.
In 1981, she married Arthur Lumkes, owner of Wallace Gilmour’s on Chicago Avenue. Later, they both retired to Friday Harbor, Wash., where for several years he operated an island tour service and she owned a needlepoint shop. After Arthur died in 2004, Mary settled in Bellingham, Wash., and continued her interest in knitting. She is well-known and respected in the knitting world and was also a formidable bridge player.
Mary Ruth Lumkes is survived by her daughters, Carol Berry and Vikki Day; her sister, Doris Smith; her brother, Douglas McCain; her three stepchildren, Michael Lumkes, Jeffrey Lumkes and Christine Lumkes; her grandchildren, Allison, Sarah, T.J., and Emily; and her great-grandchildren, Kyran and Shae. She was preceded in death by her husband, Arthur, and her parents, Ruth McCain Johnson and Arthur C. McCain.
No service will be held, but if you would like to contact her family you may send an e-mail to vikkivt@comcast.net.