Obituaries

Ruth Bunzel

Published by admin on Thu, 04/17/2025 - 8:58am

COAL CITY—Ruth R. Bunzel, 85, of Coal City, passed away Tuesday afternoon, April 15, 2025 at her home.
Born on June 9, 1939, in Kankakee, Ruth was the beloved daughter of John William and Bernadine (Weiske) Rice. She spent her formative years in Fort Collins, CO, where she graduated from high school, laying the foundation for a life defined by hard work, devotion, and quiet strength.
On June 9, 1959, her 20th birthday, Ruth married the love of her life, Bobby J. Bunzel, and together they established their home and raised a family.

Andrew B. Serena

Published by admin on Mon, 04/14/2025 - 12:56pm

SOUTH WILMINGTON—Andrew B. Serena, 37, of South Wilmington, passed away Sunday, April 13, 2025 at Christ Hospital in Oak Lawn, IL.
Andrew graduated from Joliet Junior College and also graduated with a bachelor's degree from Illinois State University in 2012. He has served as a Correctional Officer at Grundy County Jail for the last five years.

Paul Derr

Published by admin on Fri, 04/11/2025 - 10:28am

DWIGHT—Paul W. Derr, 88, of Dwight, formerly of Coal City, passed away at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, April 7, 2025, at Heritage Woods of Dwight.
Paul was born on Sept. 15, 1936, in Fairbury, IL, to Theodore “T” and Clara (Haberkorn) Derr. He married Lorraine Sanquist on Feb. 4, 1959. She survives. He married Mary Claire Maguire on March 8, 1965, in Campus, IL. They were married for 46 wonderful years before she preceded him in death on Feb. 14, 2012.

Conrad Stanley

Published by admin on Tue, 04/08/2025 - 12:17pm

SOUTH WILMINGTON—Conrad Stanley, 68, of South Wilmington, formerly of Colorado and Wyoming, passed way Monday, April 7, 2025 at Ascension Saint Mary Hospital in Kankakee.
The family will receive friends at Baskerville Funeral Home, 700 E. Kahler Rd., in Wilmington on Friday, April 11, 2025 from 4 p.m. until the time of funeral service at 7 p.m.
Cremation rites will be accorded following the funeral services.

John W. Harvey

Published by admin on Tue, 04/08/2025 - 11:01am

BRAIDWOOD—John W. “Johnny” Harvey, 52, of Braidwood, passed away on Saturday, April 5, 2025 surrounded by his family at MacNeal Hospital in Berwyn.
Born Feb. 2, 1973, in Morris, John “Johnny” William Harvey Jr, was the son of John “Jack” (Denise) Harvey and Pam (Brad) Oram.
Johnny dedicated himself to his work at Industrial Parts Group, hitting his first million dollars in sales on November of 2019,
He enjoyed fishing, working on his Camaro’s, Pebbles and Hard Core 2 and all things racing. Johnny’s greatest joy came from spending time with his family.

Cheri Lynn Widlacki

Published by admin on Tue, 04/08/2025 - 8:43am

ESSEX—Cheri Lynn Kiukman Widlacki, 62, of Essex, and formerly of Crestwood and Bourbonnais, passed away surrounded by her children on April 4, 2025 at Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, IL.

Thomas E. Bradley

Published by admin on Tue, 04/08/2025 - 8:40am

WILMINGTON—Thomas E. Bradley, 65, of Wilmington, formerly of Chicago, passed away on Saturday, March 29, 2025 at Lightways Hospice in Joliet with family by his side.

Bryan Hendrex

Published by admin on Fri, 04/04/2025 - 9:08am

MORRIS—Bryan Hendrex, 59, of Morris, passed away April 2, 2025, at his home. He was born Nov. 4, 1965, in Joliet, the son of Dora (nee Heck) and Paul Hendrex.
Bryan grew up in Braceville, graduated high school, and attended technical school to become an auto mechanic. He owned and operated Bryan’s Autoworld in Braidwood for 32 years and had many loyal customers. He enjoyed cheering on the Cubs, the Bears, and especially loved watching NASCAR. He also worked on local race cars in the pits at Grundy County Speedway on Friday nights.

Anna Mae Winke

Published by admin on Wed, 04/02/2025 - 11:22am

GARDNER—Anna Mae Winke, of Gardner, formerly of Lake Shannon, Reddick, IL and Lockport, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, April 1, 2025 surrounded by her family.
Born Nov. 20, 1931 in Logansport, IN, She was the daughter of William Pumel and Cora (nee Rinehart) Pumel-Albertson. Anna married the love of her life, Edward F. Winke on Aug. 23, 1948, and he passed away April 22, 2012.

Doug Macdonald

Published by admin on Tue, 04/01/2025 - 11:57am

MORRIS—Doug Macdonald, 74, of Morris, passed away unexpectedly on Sunday, March 30, 2025 at his home.
Born Nov. 21, 1950 in Morris, Douglas Paul was a son of Robert and Natalie (Eckland) Macdonald. He was raised and educated in Morris, graduated from Morris Community High School with the class of 1968, and attended Eastern Illinois University. On June 9, 1973 Doug married Elizabeth “Betty” Mason in Libertyville, IL. Together they would establish their family and make their home in Morris.