Valerie Ann Milewski

Valerie was born March 5, 1960 in Chicago, Illinois. She grew up in Morton Grove, Illinois.

Valerie briefly attended St. Theresa College in Winona Minnesota before joining the Marine Corp. Valerie proudly served her country as a member of the U.S. Marines then the reserves for several years. Valerie qualified as a sharpshooter in the Marine Corp, and earned the rank of Sargent.

After getting married in 1980, Valerie moved to California where she worked as a legal secretary and started her family. In 2002 Valerie moved back to Illinois to be closer to her family. Valerie resided in Aurora, Illinois for many years. She married Dave Blackard and expanded her family. She lost Dave to cancer on Oct 2, 2018.

Valerie continued working as a legal secretary in Illinois, and later transferred to eBilling at McDermott Will and Emery, where she was working when she passed away. She was proud of her career and was committed to her work, keeping it up until just the last few weeks when she was no longer physically able to do so.

Valerie is survived by: her three children, Daniel James Butterfield, Stephanie Faye Flanery (Cory), and Elliott Daithi Milewski nee Caitriona Nancy Blackard; her grandchildren Hawthorne Flanery and Saoirshe Flanery; her sisters Vivian Saegesser (Marc), Virginia Lyon, and Veronica Milewski; her nieces Rebecca Lyon and Marina Lyon, and nephews Zachary Saegesser (Anush) and Joshua Saegesser.

We invite family and friends to a Pot Luck memorial lunch 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM on Sunday, September 28 at the Eola Community Center, 555 S. Eola Road, Aurora, Illinois. An immediate family burial service will be held at a later date.