Marie Lorraine Shepherd

Marie Lorraine Shepherd, 88, passed peacefully on Wednesday, November 10th, 2021, in Lisle, Illinois, surrounded by her family. Although Mom loved being surrounded by family, she also knew when it was time to go home.

Born to parents Eino and Irma Hirvonen on May 28, 1933 in Quincy, Massachusetts, Marie was proud of her Finnish heritage: “You can tell a Finn, but you can’t tell her much.” To the very end Marie displayed that extraordinary and indomitable Finnish spirit of “sisu” -- never quitting, never giving up, an unwavering confidence even in the face of overwhelming adversity. A true Bostonian, she often described herself (in song) as having been “Raised up on A street, Dragged down on B street” and “Southie” as her hometown. She attended Dartmouth College, but only on the weekends. Despite living nearly six decades in Glen Ellyn, she refused to give up her Boston accent which got her out of numerous traffic tickets. (Marie would simply explain she was from out of town, and just trying to “Pahk the cah in Hahvahd Yahd.”)

Marie worked for American Petroleum in New York City where she struck up a friendship with Paul Stookey, encouraging him to quit wasting his time playing guitar in the Village and to get a job. Fortunately neither, Peter, Paul nor Mary paid attention.

An accomplished musician herself (accordion and ukulele), as a “Stew” for United Airlines Marie would often entertain passengers with wine and song on the long, cross country, DC-7 flights. After one such flight was cancelled, rather than let the steaks go to waste, Marie took them home and had a party. She was fired shortly thereafter.

Marie met Bill Shepherd, from Pontiac, Illinois, on a weekend ski trip, despite not seeing him “most of the weekend”. She was given a quarter for a cup of coffee, and told where to meet after the last run. Although she lacked the ability to balance a checkbook and according to Bill, needed “a lot” of dental work – he recognized her many other strong qualities, (including her laugh, quick wit and excellent ski knees) and the two were married in Milton, Massachusetts on January 24th, 1959. They began a family in Cresskill, New Jersey where she coerced her newborn son into a modeling career so she could visit her girlfriends in Manhattan.

New York Life transferred the Shepherd family to Chicago in 1964, and although she vowed to “never get stuck in the Midwest,” Marie and Bill purchased a home in Glen Ellyn Woods, where Bill lived happily ever after for over 50 years.

Marie stayed busy raising the couple’s four children, collecting antiques, volunteering at church, and being involved in various community activities including The Garden Club.

The family spent way too much time together camping, skiing, and taking “exhausting” road trips in their Rambler and later a VW bus. Games of “slug bug” and again, a little wine and a lot of song, helped reduce the amount of “are we there yet?”

Marie was the perfect Navy wife dutifully making the annual pilgrimage to Pensacola, Florida for Dad’s two weeks of training duty. Trapped on a Navy base allowed plenty of time for family bonding as the four kids taught Mom about sunburns and ear-aches and she taught them various life skills such as collecting seashells, and how to hitchhike.

A beloved and well-respected secretary in the Athletic Department at Glenbard South High School, Marie enjoyed her time there immensely, not only with the students but with her co-workers as well, who in true “Norma Rae” fashion, she inspired to unionize.

Additional extra-curricular activities included founding the Raider Christmas Tree Drive which earned her some unwanted press in the “Police Round Up” section of the Glen Ellyn News.

Marie and Bill sailed together into retirement, exploring Lake Michigan, spending time with their grandkids and Navy friends, and enjoying sunset dinners at the Burnham Park Yacht Club. The Navy’s “Space Available” program allowed them to travel the world and (once they landed at least) even see some of it. (“There are no windows in the cahgo hold!”)

A devoted grandmother, Marie had twelve grandchildren that she adored and often cited as her highest achievement.

Guided by her Christian faith, Marie and was an active member of Southminster Presbyterian Church where she and Bill served and attended over 55 years.

Marie was preceded in death by her husband of 61 years, Captain Charles William Shepherd, and is survived by son John (and Nina) Shepherd, daughters Jennifer Kruse (and Mike) Burke, Joan (and David) Spata and Barbara (and Buddy) O'Brien, and the aforementioned grandkids -- Dr. Abigail Shepherd (and Rev. Cameron) Beyenberg, Faith Shepherd, Joanna Shepherd, Stewart Cox, HN Josef Kruse (Navy), Elijah Kruse, Adeline (and Noah) Singer, Ethan Spata, Amelia Spata, Alaini Spata, Buddy O’Brien III and Harrison O’Brien.

During Marie’s final days she was both embraced by (“too much”) love from her grateful family (“go home already”), as well as by the outstanding staff at Brookdale Senior Living and caregivers from Three Oaks Hospice. She lived a rich, full life and never lost her sense of humor -- describing “hospice” as “what we clean up… after a parade in Boston.”

A private memorial service will be held at 1:00PM, Friday, November 19th in the Morton Arboretum.

In lieu of flowers… consider purchasing a Christmas Tree from, or making a donation to, the B.R. Ryall YMCA: https://www.brryallymca.org/donate/