Lori was born at Cook County Hospital in Chicago, and she grew up in the near west suburbs of Maywood and Melrose Park. She was a child of the Great Depression, and she lost her father at an early age. This made for a difficult life’s beginning, but this, along with an immigrant family’s instinct for survival, forged in her a resilience and an intense love of family that never left her.
Matt, Trisha, and Danny, her grandchildren, and Xander, her great grandson, made her the most happy. Disney World vacations with the grandkids were indeed magical times for her. These were the happiest times of her life. So were birthdays. Other’s birthdays, that is. She didn’t look forward to her own.
Lori married Ray (Ernie to some) on a very hot August 4, 1956. They were married for 65 years until Ray passed away in 2022. Lori was the best thing that ever happened to Ray. She supported him in any endeavor that fancied him and in endeavors that didn’t fancy him but had to be done anyway. She was proud of him, took care of him and loved him.
She had a special bond with her sister Ida, the depth of which was known only to them, and maybe to other siblings brought up in such close proximity in age, distance and difficult circumstance. For over 60 years Sunday mornings were reserved for hours-long telephone conversations with Auntie Ida. Pauses in the conversations were filled with a long sigh and the word “see” spoken by one, then repeated by the other. “See” could have been either a statement or a question, depending.
She adored her friends. If you happened to like poker, bingo or casinos you were an instant friend. She belonged to poker clubs nearly her entire adult life. Winning or losing wasn’t the point on poker night. Winning was the point in a casino or on bingo night.
Lori loved to travel. She worked for Eastern Airlines for 20 years. When Eastern Airlines collapsed, she found another job in the travel industry. She was excited to meet others with even remote connections to Eastern.
She went to Proviso High School before there were East and West Provisos, and took some classes at Northwestern. She liked watching the Bears and Cubs and listening to Frank Sinatra. She golfed a bit when she was younger. When she was older she enjoyed playing bocce and solving Sudoku and crossword puzzles.
Lori is survived by her son, Mark (Gail) Stevens, and her grandchildren, Matthew Stevens, Trisha (Nate) Parks, and Daniel (Gina) Stevens. Great grandson, Xander
Visitation will be on Thursday, August 22, 2024 from 4-7pm at DeFiore Funeral Home -10763 Dundee Road, Huntley. She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, Ray, her siblings, Helen, Ida, Louis and John
A Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Friday, August 23, 2024, 10am at St. Mary Catholic Church.
For further information please contact the funeral home at 847-515-8772 or online condolences may be directed to www.defiorefuneral.com
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I am very sorry for your loss; your mom let me know. I will not be able to make it to the services next week, but I will certainly be there in spirit. Although I see none listed here, please let me know if Lori had a favorite charity to which I may contribute.