Jean Erminie (nee Wilmore) Friel, age 77, of Gary, passed away Monday,
August 15, 2011 at the VNA Hospice of Valparaiso, Indiana.
She is survived by her husband of 52 years, John P. Friel of Gary; three
children Daniel (Christine) Friel of Chesterton, Julie (Greg) Nichols of
Valparaiso, and Eileen (Tim) Gray of Lafayette; four grandchildren Nicholas
and Noelle Friel of Chesterton, Zachary and Austin Nichols of Valparaiso;
brother Richard (Pat) Wilmore of Hobart; sister-in-law Shirley Zajdel of
Portage; nieces and nephews Kevin Zajdel, Mary White, Christine Livingston,
Sandy Wilmore, Dawn Aldaba and Alex Wilmore.
A lifelong resident of Gary, Ind., she was a graduate of Emerson High School
and completed her Bachelor of Science and Master’s Degrees at Indiana
University.
She spent 40 years as a kindergarten teacher at Wentworth-Wilson Elementary
School, District 155, Calumet City, Illinois. She retired in 1997. She was a
past President of the Wentworth-Wilson Council, American Federation of
Teachers, Local 1183. She volunteered at the Save the Dunes Council, COPS
program of Gary and the Calumet Chapter of the Indiana Civil Liberties
Union.
Funeral Services will be held on Saturday, August 20, 2011 at 10 a.m. at
Burns Funeral Home, 701 E. 7th St., Hobart, Ind. Cremation will follow the
service.
Friends may call at the Burns Funeral Home (Hobart) on Friday, August 19,
2011 from 4 to 8 p.m. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to VNA
Hospice Center, 2401 Valley Drive, Valparaiso, IN 46383.
www.burnsfuneral.con
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Posted 8/17/2011