In the days since the Feb. 7 death of Winnetka resident Andrew McKenna, a renowned Chicago businessman, philanthropist and sports leader, at age 93, there have been many recollections about the lasting legacy he left on Chicago.
Phil Andrew remembers how McKenna provided him with tickets to one of Chicago’s most eagerly-anticipated sporting events.
During the summer of 1988, Andrew was convalescing at his Winnetka home from the wounds he suffered that May after murderer Laurie Dann broke into his family’s house following the fatal shooting she committed at the nearby Hubbard Woods Elementary School.
Dann took Andrew, then a 20-year-old college student, and his parents, hostage. After some time, he convinced her to set his parents free but was eventually shot when he tried to disarm her.
Andrew was slowly regaining his strength at home and one day was going through the mail. He discovered an envelope from McKenna containing tickets for the first-ever night game set to be played at Wrigley Field, an event that was drawing international interest.
McKenna, who served as chairman of the Cubs from 1981-1984, was still a board member of Tribune Co., which owned the baseball team at the time.
Andrew said he was certainly aware of McKenna and had previously babysat his nieces, but didn’t know him personally.
Andrew said the tickets were mailed in an envelope with a personal note from McKenna thanking him for heroism in the shooting incident and wishing him a continued recovery. McKenna wrote that he hoped Andrew would enjoy the tickets to the Cubs game.
“I didn’t appreciate at first it was the first night game and a historic moment in baseball,” Andrew recalled. “That really spoke to his very personal and human touch to have that kind of insight and generosity.”
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The Aug. 8, 1988 tickets McKenna sent for Andrew and a friend were for seats right behind the Cubs dugout as they took on the Philadelphia Phillies for 3.5 innings before Mother Nature came calling. A torrential downpour occurred, eventually forcing postponement of the game, leaving the first official game to be played the next night.
Andrew said he was not able to return on Aug. 9 and admitted getting soaked at Wrigley Field on the 8th, but he looks back on the evening with fond memories.
“It was a great way to close out the summer,” he said.
Andrew, a former FBI agent who now lives in Wilmette, added he subsequently met McKenna years later as he was doing work on gun violence and interacting with the business community.
“He was certainly somebody dedicated to improving lives both through charities and individually,” Andrew said.
Another person recalling McKenna through a Wrigley Field connection is Carol Haddon, a Cubs season ticket holder for more than 50 years. Haddon, a former Glencoe resident who now lives in Morton Grove, remembers meeting McKenna both at the ballpark and at various charitable events.
“He was always so well-groomed and he was very easy to interact with. He was very approachable. He knew the patrons,” Haddon said.
Back in Winnetka, McKenna was a regular attendee at the 7 a.m. daily mass at Saints Faith, Hope and Charity Catholic Parish, according to Rev. Marty O’Donovan.
“I thought he was a very humble guy,” recalled O’Donovan, who delivered the eulogy at McKenna’s funeral on Feb. 11. “Not only did he come and pray quietly with the rest of the congregation, but after mass there were a group of younger people – 20 to 30 years younger than him – who used to gravitate toward him. They weren’t doing anything but talking and laughing. He would always have time for people before he left and he was just a guy who enjoyed being with other people and was comfortable with other people. He was big on relationships.”
O’ Donovan recalled the first time they went out to lunch and went over restaurant options, eventually deciding to eat at McDonald’s headquarters in Oak Brook, where McKenna was a board member of the fast food giant.
“I think I can influence the environment over there,” O’Donovan remembers McKenna saying. “It was a great understatement but that is what he spent his [time] doing; he influenced the environment in all kinds of settings and for the positive.”
McKenna also had connections to Wilmette’s Loyola Academy; many of his grandchildren attended the Catholic high school.
“He was a trusted learner and advisor and the guy had vast experience over so many kinds of projects,” recalled former Loyola President Pat McGrath.
McGrath recalled seeking out McKenna when he initially started at Loyola in 2009, fully cognizant of McKenna’s role in the Chicago community.
McGrath said he would tap McKenna for suggestions on how to move forward in his new job.
“He was incredibly insightful about prioritizing and strategizing how to enter the community and how to get to know it better,” he said.
McGrath spoke of the mentorship McKenna provided over his 13 years at Loyola Academy.
“He always made you feel like you could do it; in many ways he was a great coach,” McGrath said. “He was always coaching you up on what was being asked of you.”
McGrath, who last year became the pastor of Old St. Patrick’s Church in Chicago, noted the positive natures of the interactions with McKenna.
“He made you feel very, very special and he made you feel he was interested and he wanted to hear what was going on and he had an easy way about him to build you up,” McGrath said. “He was the epitome of a gentleman and class act.”
Daniel I. Dorfman is a freelance reporter with Pioneer Press.