Deacon Edmund J. Gronkiewicz, 81, died Sept. 2. He served at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish.

Deacon Gronkiewicz was born and grew up on the Southwest Side. He attended St. Casimir School, Quigley Preparatory Seminary and Loyola University Chicago, and he received his bachelor’s, master’s and law degrees all within four years of each other. A polyglot, Edmund was fluent in Latin, Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic, French, Russian and Polish.

In addition to serving as a deacon, he was active in the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulcher of Jerusalem, the Order of Sts. Maurice and Lazarus and the Constantinian Order of St. George. He was a life member and former legal counsel of the Polish Museum of America and a 49-year member of the Chicago Society of the Polish National Alliance.

Deacon Gronkiewicz had been a probate and estate planning lawyer for 55 years.