Thaddeus S. Gorny, 79, a former teacher at Lane Technical High School, died Friday at Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove.
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A graduate of Mt. Carmel High School and Chicago Teachers College, Mr. Gorny went on to teach welding and auto shop at Lane Tech in Chicago for nearly 30 years. He began his teaching career in the mid-1940s after returning from active duty in World War II.
“He was born to teach,” said Gorny’s wife, Wanda. “He loved the students and he loved teaching them a craft they could use later in their lives.”
During weekends and summer breaks, Mr. Gorny taught driver’s education at Loyola Academy and St. Benedict’s High School.
“Almost every time we’d go on vacation–say to Arizona or Wisconsin–we’d run into his former students,” recalled Wanda Gorny.
Mr. Gorny loved to travel, especially to the western states. He spent much of his free time in his wood shop at his home, making gifts for friends, including bird houses and furniture.
Mr. Gorny was an Army World War II veteran, serving two years in the Aleutian Islands. He retired with the rank of sergeant.
In addition to his wife, Mr. Gorny is survived by two sons, Stephen and Edward; and two grandchildren. Mass will be said at 10 a.m. Tuesday in Our Lady of Peace Catholic Church, 701 Plainfield Rd., Darien.