Nov. 22--Eileen Mary Quinn, 98, a life-long Chicagoan, avid White Sox fan and the mother of former Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn, died early Saturday morning in her sleep, according to relatives.
Eileen Quinn, born Oct. 18, 1917, died shortly before 6 a.m. in her sleep at her River Forest home, said one of her three sons, John Quinn.
"Our dear mother had a glass of wine, went to bed and now she's gone with the Lord," he said.
Eileen Quinn, who was born "before women could vote," was a native of the Englewood community on the city's South Side, said her son.
She married Patrick Joseph Quinn, a naval officer, on Jan. 2, 1943, during a leave in the middle of World War II. The couple later settled down after her husband became one of the first recipients of the GI bill and obtained a loan to buy a home in Hinsdale in 1948, their youngest son John said.
Eileen Quinn went to high school at the Academy of our Lady, later known as Longwood Academy, in Chicago. She also attended Wilson Junior College, studying secretarial skills, and later worked 30 years in the Hinsdale District 181 school system as a secretary and administrative assistant. She retired in 1995, during the emergence of the ".com era ... that worried her," said John Quinn.
He recalled his mother as a devout Catholic who had a "tremendous gift of empathy for others." She lived by the quote, "the purpose of life is to lead a life of purpose," said John Quinn.
In her elder years, she refused to live in an assisted living residence. When asked, she said, "I don't need that, I can take care of myself," John Quinn recalled.
"She was very feisty and a very classy woman," he said.
Eileen was extremely proud of her three sons, Pat, Tom and John, and her seven grandchildren and one great-grandchild, he added.
A wake will be held from 3 to 9 p.m. Friday at the Dreschler Brown Williams Funeral Home at 203 S. Marion St. in Oak Park. The funeral will be at St. Luke Catholic Church in River Forest, but the date and time have yet to be announced.
