Lillian Barton Sargeant, 82, died at Belmont Village in Oak Park on Aug. 30, 2020 after a lengthy illness. Born in Neillsville, Wisconsin to the late Esther Kramer and Leo Barton, she grew up in the Chicago area and graduated Northern Illinois University in 1961 with a degree in education. She later went on to earn a master’s degree in early childhood education. At Northern Illinois, she met her husband Roger, whom she married in 1961. She spent her entire career teaching kindergarten, which was her passion and her gift, and retired from Western Avenue School in Geneva in 2006.
She loved her family, her dogs and especially all young children, who adored her in return. She will be remembered for her caring nature, her red velvet cake and her inability to be stumped when it came to celebrity gossip. She was always up for a lively and intense debate on Illinois politics.
Lillian is survived by her daughter, Susan Buczkowski; her son, Thomas Sargeant; her daughter-in-law, Jodee Sargeant; her grandsons, Franklin and Leo Buczkowski; her nephews Jeff Barton and Scott (Mary Kay) Barton; her great-nephews, Jack and Spencer; her sister-in-law, Valerie Barton; her niece, Lauren (Jeff) Habes-Wojcik; and her great-nieces, Mia and Page. She was preceded in death by her husband, Roger, in 2018 and her brother, John Barton, in 2012. She is also survived by many friends who loved her.
Lillian lived the last two years of her life at Belmont Village in Oak Park. The family would like to thank the amazing staff for their remarkable, devoted care and kindness for which we will be eternally grateful.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that charitable contributions in memory of Lillian Sargeant be made to Brain Support Network, P.O. Box 7264, Menlo Park, CA 94026, www.brainsupportnetwork.org.
