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Fr. James Crilly
Viatorian Father James F. Crilly, 89, died Nov. 2 at Addolorata Villa in Wheeling.
He was one of three missionaries who established a Viatorian school and parish in Bogotá, Colombia, in the early 1960s.
Father Crilly was born in Chicago and graduated from St. Philip High School before making first vows in 1950. He was ordained in 1956.
He taught at Illinois high schools for five years before going to Bogotá in the summer of 1961. He was one of the three founding Viatorian Fathers of the Foundation of Colombia and the all-boys school, Colegio San Viator.
In 1973, he returned to the United States to become formation director and coordinator of vocations and taught for one year at St. Viator High School in Arlington Heights. In 1977, he was named pastor of St. Viator Parish before being appointed assistant provincial for the Province of Chicago in 1979, serving the province in that position until 1983.
He is survived by his sister, BVM Sister Virginia Marie Crilly. -
Sr. Mary Agna Gorlewski
Felician Sister Mary Agna (Lucille) Gorlewski, 102, died on Nov. 2, in Our Lady of the Angels Convent.
Born in Chicago, she attended St. Joseph School and Good Counsel High School. She entered the Felician Sisters in 1934 and professed her final vows in 1942. She ministered as a teacher and principal in Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota. She also served as organist in a number of parishes.
In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she ministered at St. Stanislaus, Posen (1948-1950); Our Lady of the Gardens (1957-1959); Good Counsel High School (1965-1966); and Our Lady of Ransom, Niles (1973-1974).
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Deacon Kenneth Bell
Deacon Kenneth A. Bell, 93, died Oct. 27. He was ordained in 1978 and served at St. Domitilla Parish.
He is survived by his children, Christine Bell, Monica Gieser, Stephen Bell, Marty Bell, Phil Bell, Greg Bell, Therese Stellato, John Bell and Paul Bell; 21 grandchildren; and 20 great-grandchildren.
Deacon Bell and his late wife, Jeanne, lived for 20 years in Hillside and 41 years in Berkeley. He was an auditor and an accountant for several insurance companies and, in his 70s, became a business manager for Mary Queen of Heaven Parish in Cicero and St. Clare of Montefalco Parish.
At St. Domitilla, he served on the parish council, numerous committees, worked with the lectors, participated in the Christian Family Movement, and taught baptism classes with his wife Jeanne before becoming a deacon. After ordination, he led the Sorrowful Mother novenas, baptized babies and married couples, led a Bible study for more than 20 years and was a part of the Men’s Christ Renews His Parish team and then the men’s prayer group. The thing he loved doing the most was preaching the homilies at Mass on Sundays, according to his family.
In 2016, after his wife died, he moved to Casa San Carlo in Northlake, where he served on the liturgy committee and wrote meditations for the daily Masses.
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Sr. M. Rosalinda Grigonis
Sister of St. Casimir M. Rosalinda Grigonis, 96, died Oct. 9.
Born in Gary, Indiana, Sister Rosalinda entered the Sisters of St. Casimir in 1938 and made her final vows in 1947.
She taught in schools in New Mexico, Nebraska and Illinois.
In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she taught at Our Lady of Vilna School (1940-1941), Providence of God School (1941), Immaculate Conception School, Brighton Park (1942-1946, 1947-1949), St. Anthony, Cicero (1949), Nativity BVM School (1952-1955), St. George, Bridgeport (1965-1967), St. Joseph, South Chicago (1968-1969) and St. Peter and Paul (1955-1965), where she also served as principal. She ministered at Maria High School as math teacher and assistant principal (1971-1989). She then served as assistant to the general treasurer before moving to Franciscan Village in 2014, where she served in the ministry of prayer and presence.
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Sr. Betty Obal
Loretto Sister Betty Obal, 75, died Oct. 12 at the Loretto Motherhouse in Nerinx, Kentucky.
Born in Nebraska, Sister Betty was received into the Sisters of Loretto in 1984 and made her final vows in 1993. She served mostly in Denver, Chicago and New York, where she worked at the United Nations in Loretto’s NGO office.
From 1987 to 1995, Sister Betty lived in Chicago. During this period, she lived in a variety of settings, including at the Catholic Worker house in Uptown Chicago. She also worked part-time and full-time in a number of positions, including as associate director of alternative housing for women with disabilities and for the Institute of Women Today Sisterhouse, an ecumenical group where more than 15 female ex-offenders, religious sisters, teachers and homeless people shared community. During this time, Sister Betty also initiated the Accessibility Project, a Loretto-funded study that resulted in improved policies and standards in the Chicago archdiocese for inclusion of persons with disabilities. In addition, she was a substitute teacher in several Chicago-area school districts.
She is survived by her sister, Delores Jacobs, and her brother, Thomas Obal.
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