We thank the wonderful people at Alden for the care and compassion they showed to our mother.
Virginia was born June 1, 1931, to Eugenia M Lunde of Chicago and Peter N. Schopen of Wilmette, where she grew up attending St. Joseph School of Wilmette and New Trier High School where she would meet her future husband John G. (Jack) Spellman, also of Wilmette.
She was a person of many interests. As a young woman she worked as a model. She then became a devoted mother to six children always balancing home life with being cub scout den mother, running the St. Philip of Northfield fundraising fair, and attending all of her children’s sporting events, even finding time to teach her children to create with clay making pottery. She was a very talented artist and became a yoga instructor at the Himalayan Institute of Glenview long before yoga became popular. She later taught at Nicolet College in Northern Wisconsin where she and her husband Jack moved to. After 41 years, Jack passed away and, as time went on, Virginia remarried her 2nd late husband Leon Baerwald of Wisconsin. While living in Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana and Nevada, Virginia pursued a life of helping others through her yoga, AA sponsorships, and her spiritual workshops.
Virginia was the loving sister to Daniel P Schopen (Sue), the late Lois E McGuire-Contant (Harold), Charleen K Sepsy (Lyle), the late Peter F Schopen (Sandy), Eugene R Schopen (Lori), and a great number of nieces and nephews and godmother to many.
She was the devoted mother to the late Dorinda M “Bunny” Martin (Donald), John T “Jack” Spellman (Judi), Michael P Spellman (Julie), Jennifer L Murrin, the late Gerianne J Smouse (Steve), and Robert N Spellman (Patricia), and proud grandmother to John R Spellman (Brittany), Ryan T Spellman (Andrea), Jacilyn E Spellman, Richard P Spellman (Amy), Stephen M Spellman (Rachel), Sean T Hanna, Michael P Spellman Jr, Kaedi A Spellman (Jesse), Robert A “Bobby” Murrin (Ayesha), Jacob D “Jake” Murrin (Taylor), Angelique V Ganong, Cassandra L Hafferkamp (Ian), David A Spellman, and Robert P Spellman, plus 18 great grandchildren and counting.
A celebration of life will be held at The Lawn Grill Restaurant, 3900 Fairway Dr. #1088, Wilmette, Illinois on May 18th starting at noon, with service at 2:00.
The family asks, in lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, through the Great Strides, Chicago Chapter, of Illinois. The Spellman fund raising team is “Spellbound for a Cure”.
DONATIONS
Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, through the Great Strides, Chicago Chapter, of IllinoisThe Spellman fund raising team is “Spellbound for a Cure”
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