BVM Sister Mary Johnellen Garrity, 90, died Jan. 8 in Dubuque, Iowa. 

Born in Chicago, she entered the BVM congregation in 1945, from St. Andrew Parish. She professed final vows in 1953.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, Sister Mary Johnellen taught first grade at St. Charles, ninth grade at St. Mary High School, history at Immaculata High School, and in retirement, she taught part time at Madonna High School. She also taught in New York, Iowa and Kansas.

She is survived by her sister, Irene Schultz.

Holy Family of Nazareth Sister Mary Luke Liss, 70, died Jan. 11, in the 53rd year of her religious life. 

Born in the neighborhood of Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish on the Northwest Side, she attended Schurz High School before entering the community in 1965 and professed final vows in 1975. 

She taught at St. Hyacinth as well as at schools in Mount Prospect and in Indiana and Wisconsin, and she was principal at St. Emily School, Mount Prospect.

Sister of St. Joseph Lorraine (Clare Joseph) Ruh, 92, died Jan. 11.

Sister Lorraine had been in religious life for 77 years. She taught at St. Barbara, Brookfield; St. Mary, Riverside; Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Melrose Park; St. Francis Xavier, LaGrange; St. John Fisher; St. Leonard, Berwyn; St. Attracta, Cicero; and St. Joseph Military Academy. She also worked in the business office at Bethlehem Center, LaGrange Park and as a switchboard operator/supervisor at the CSJ Center.

She is survived by her siblings John Ruh and Dorothy Stepanik.

Sister of St. Joseph Margaret (John Patrick) Halligan, 90, died Jan. 14.

She had been a member of the congregation for 70 years.

Sister Margaret taught at St. John Fisher; Divine Infant, Westchester; Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Melrose Park; St. Joseph Academy and St. Francis Xavier, LaGrange; and St. Barbara, Brookfield, where she was also religious education coordinator, coordinator of pastoral care and pastoral associate.

She is survived by her sisters Irene Spahn, Jane Motycka and Catherine Stotts.

Father Eugene F. Durkin, 94, died at St. Patrick Residence in Naperville, Illinois, on Jan. 19. He was most recently the associate pastor of Holy Name Cathedral Parish. He retired in 1993.

Born in Chicago, Father Durkin attended Little Flower School, Quigley Preparatory Seminary and the University of St. Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary before being ordained in 1949.

He served as the assistant pastor at Our Lady of Lourdes (1951-1963), St. Thomas the Apostle (1963-1967) and Holy Name Cathedral (1967-1976). He served as associate pastor of St. Paul of the Cross Parish, Park Ridge (1976-1982) and Holy Name Cathedral (1982-1993). After retiring in 1993, Father Durkin resided at Holy Name Cathedral until he moved to Presence Saint Benedict Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, and then to St. Patrick Residence to be closer to his family.

He is survived by his sisters, Dolores Durkin and Rosemarie Cargie.

Deacon Russell F. Anderberg, 79, died Jan. 12.

Deacon Anderberg was owner and president of Mercury Press, Inc., Forest Park.

He served the Archdiocese of Chicago as a deacon for 16 years, the Archdiocese of Milwaukee for three years and most recently the Archdiocese of Orlando. 

He is survived by his wife, Lorraine; children Cheryl Catalano, John Anderberg and Sandra Anderberg; grandchildren Christopher, Michael, Erin, Patrick, Sarah, Ellen, Mitchell and Isabella; great-grandchildren Thomas, Emma, Sean, Nora, Ryan and William; and siblings Peter and George Anderberg and Donna Macleary.

Deacon Peter Meehan, 80, died Jan. 15. He was ordained in 1991 and served at St. Martha Parish, Morton Grove.

He attended St. Nicholas School and St. George High School, both in Evanston.

He was active in youth sports, coaching a total of 32 teams that his children played on. As a deacon, he presided at baptisms, weddings and funerals, preached homilies, taught pre-Cana classes and brought Communion to the sick.

He is survived by his wife, Josephine, and children Peter Meehan, Patrick Meehan, Joseph Meehan, Nancy Dennis, Cathleen Thannert and Kevin Meehan and 19 grandchildren. He also is survived by his brothers, Thomas and Michael Meehan.

Viatorian Father Rev. John (Jack) E. Linnan, 83, died Jan. 15 at the Viatorian Province Center in Arlington Heights.  

Born in Springfield, Father Linnan made his first vows in 1952 and final vows in 1955. He was ordained a priest in 1961 in Louvain, Belgium.

He taught at seminaries in Washington, D.C., and ministered in Nevada before moving to Arlington Heights to serve as assistant provincial (1974-1979). In 1979, he became an associate professor of theology at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago and in 1981 was appointed as the third president of CTU. He held that position until 1987. After a sabbatical year, he returned to CTU and continued to be a member of the faculty until 2001. 

In 2011, he moved to the retirement residence at the Viatorian Province Center in Arlington Heights. 

Mercy Sister Barbara Heneghan, 78, died Dec. 1.

Raised on the West Side, she was educated by Sisters of Mercy at Resurrection Grade School and Siena High School. She entered the Sisters of Mercy in 1957.

Sister Barbara taught at St. Catherine of Siena, Oak Park; Precious Blood; St. Mary of the Lake; and St. Mary, Lake Forest. In 1970, she was named curriculum director at Siena High School. In 1977, Sister Barbara was responsible for moving Siena High School to a new location, where it was called Austin Career Center. She remained teacher/director there until 1990. When it closed, Sister Barbara taught at St. Patrick High School and was a member of the professional staff at Maryville Parenting Teen Center.

After retiring from teaching, Sister Barbara served as a patient advocate at Mercy Hospital; a member of the support staff at McAuley Manor, Aurora, Illinois; and a volunteer at St. Angela School.

Mercy Sister Mary Susan Thomas, 95, died Dec. 14.

Born in Oak Park, she entered the Sisters of Mercy in 1944 determined to be a nurse. 

After receiving her nursing degree, Sister Susan first worked in direct patient care on the surgical floor, then went on to teach and supervise, eventually becoming an administrator. 

For nearly 30 years, she ministered at Mercy Hospitals in Chicago and Aurora, Illinois; in Iowa; and in Wisconsin.

In 1971, she began serving as a USA surveyor for the Joint Commission of Accreditation of Hospitals, located in Chicago. In this position, she was part a team of experts who accredit and certify more than 21,000 healthcare organizations and programs in the United States. 

In 1975, she transferred to the Illinois State Department of Public Health, where she worked in staff development. She retired from that position in 1989, and started a 17-year career as a volunteer communication consultant for the Diocese of Springfield, Illinois. She moved to Mercy Circle in Chicago in 2014.