Madeleine V. (Maddy) Hickey, 29, an Oak Park resident, died on Sept. 9, 2015 from a sudden, unexpected illness. Born on Dec. 13, 1985, in New York City, she moved to the Chicago area with her parents, Torry and Jack Hickey, who is the artistic director of Oak Park Festival Theatre, in 1987. At first, they lived in Chicago and then in Skokie. A 2004 graduate of Niles North High School, she was active in theater, vocal jazz, and studied Irish Dance for many years with Trinity Irish Dancers. A lover of the arts, she studied theater at the University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana. She made her professional acting debut in Over the Tavern at the Mercury Theatre and worked often with Oak Park Festival Theatre, first as an intern for As You Like It, later appearing in Romeo and Juliet, The Comedy of Errors and, most recently, in The Picture of Dorian Gray. Her proudest moment was appearing in “Mid-Winter’s Tale” this past December with her three children and her parents.
Her vocation was nursing, and in 2012 she earned her RN license and worked professionally as a nurse for the past three years.
Maddy Hickey is survived by her children, Bobby, Jack and Joe Tansey; her parents, Torry and Jack Hickey; her brother, John K. Hickey III; her grandfather, John K. Hickey; her grandmother, Virginia Cavanagh; her uncles, Tom Cavanagh and Roger Hickey (Julie Burton); her aunt, Patricia Corsini (William); her cousins, Nicole (Ed) Melodia, Jason (Jennifer) Corsini, Taryn, Kevin and Clare Cavanagh; numerous other relatives and many dear friends. She was preceded in death by her grandfather, Michael Cavanagh; her Nana, (grandmother); and also a nurse, Elizabeth (Betty) Hickey.
A memorial service will be held on Saturday, Oct. 10 at 1 p.m. at Oak Park’s Grace Episcopal Church, 924 Lake St. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Maddy Hickey’s sons at the following website, www.crowdrise.com/maddysboys/fundraiser/jhenaimootz.
