Joseph Strzelczyk, a lifelong resident of Summit, had an “unquestionable” love for the village and its residents, a village trustee said Tuesday.
In 1997, he decided to run for mayor, and he not only won but was re-elected four times. He became commonly known to residents as “Mayor Joe.”
Strzelczyk, 75, died Sunday morning of cancer. Before announcing last week that he was taking a leave of absence, Strzelczyk endorsed the nomination of Sergio Rodriguez, a trustee since 2005, as the temporary president pro tempore of the village. It wasn’t immediately clear Tuesday when trustees would officially appoint someone to fill the remaining two years of Strzelczyk’s term.
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Visitation for Strzelczyk will be held from 2 to 9 p.m. Wednesday at Foran Funeral Home, 7300 W. Archer Ave., Summit. A funeral Mass is to be celebrated 10 a.m. Thursday in St. Blase Church, 6101 S. 75th Ave., Summit, according to the village. Burial will be at Resurrection Cemetery in Justice.
“We knew Mayor Joe was facing a tough fight, but Mayor Joe was a tough person, and we all hoped that he would overcome his health challenges,” Rodriguez said in a prepared statement.
Mr. Strzelczyk’s career in public service began in 1978, when he worked as a special recreation instructor for the Chicago Park District, according to his biography on the village website. He was elected a Summit village trustee in 1990, a position he held until his election as mayor in 1997.
“I enjoy public service and I enjoy working with people, especially young people and senior citizens,” Mr. Strzelczyk said in the biography.
Village Clerk Sergio Garcia said Mr. Strzelczyk’s dedication to his position could be seen in that he “insisted on being involved in running the village right up to his passing, because public service was his lifeblood.
“He was constantly on the phone talking about organizing spring cleanups in the village, the performance of the village departments, and just hated not being able to be present at every board meeting,” Garcia said in the prepared statement.
Mr. Strzelczyk listed among his mayoral accomplishments the inclusion of Summit in a revenue-sharing agreement with the Rivers Casino in Des Plaines that brought in more than $604,000 in revenue the first year, and also attracting new businesses such as an Advance Auto Parts, Family Dollar and Portillo’s restaurant, according to his biography.
Trustee Marvel McCain Parker, the director of community development before her appointment to the Village Board, said the community of 12,000 would mourn his loss.
“He was a man of honesty and integrity,” she said in the statement, terming Mr. Strzelczyk’s love for Summit and its residents “unquestionable.”
“His primary objective was to bring diversity and transparency to the village government. The legacy of his reign as mayor will be unmatched,” she said.
Mr. Strzelczyk’s brother, Chester Strzelczyk, was Summit’s mayor from 1977 to 1985.
According to Mr. Strzelczyk’s biography, he was a trader at the Chicago Board of Options Exchange in the 1980s. He also coached for the North American Pro Softball League in 1980, and later wrote a softball column for the Daily Southtown and articles for Chicago Softball Magazine. He hosted a local cable TV show, “Let’s Talk Softball” and was a commentator for a sports report on 1570-AM. He was inducted into the 16-inch Chicago Softball Hall of Fame in 2012, according to the hall’s website.
Mr. Strzelczyk also was an adult probation officer for Cook County from 1989 until 2003, when he resigned after being confronted by superiors about an arrest on charges of leaving the scene of an accident in McCook. He later pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor in that case.
Mr. Strzelczyk also was in the Army in 1962 and 1963 and served five years in the Army Reserve, according to his biography.
Dennis Sullivan is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.