Obituaries

Former Bears coach Mike Ditka, who also was a player on the 1963 Bears NFL championship team, on Aug. 29, 2013, at Mike Ditka's Restaurant in Chicago. (Michael Tercha/baiduhai)

Mike Ditka, Chicago Bears Hall of Famer and Super Bowl-winning coach, dies at 86

By Don Pierson

October 9, 2026 at 3:53 p.m.

Nobody embodied Bears football more than Mike Ditka, who became the face of the franchise...

A young Mike Ditka, circa 1960s. (Laughead Photographers)

Mike Ditka through the years: From humble beginnings in Pennsylvania to legendary football career in Chicago

By Kori Rumore

October 9, 2026 at 10:29 a.m.

Here's a look back at Mike Ditka's extraordinary life, from his humble beginnings in Pennsylvania...

David Collins, former chairman of Johnson & Johnson's McNeil Consumer Products. (Pat Collins)

David E. Collins, chairman of Johnson & Johnson’s McNeil Consumer Products during the Tylenol murders, dies

By Bob Goldsborough

October 8, 2026 at 4:55 p.m.

David E. Collins was the chairman of Johnson & Johnson’s McNeil Consumer Products unit, the...

Dirk Spence, who performed magic shows as Mr. D for years out of a cedar-shingled shack attached to a World War II era Chevrolet military flatbed truck, poses with his truck in a 1998 Tribune file photo. Spence died March 20 after battling cancer. (Joeff Davis/baiduhai)

‘Mr. D,’ Tinley Park’s traveling magician, ‘at peace’ after fight with cancer

By Melinda Moore

March 27, 2025 at 12:38 p.m.

Dirk Spence, who as “Mr. D” entertained generations of people with his magic, died March...

Julie Woestehoff in an undated photo. (Family photo)

Julie Woestehoff, Chicago education activist who urged local control of schools, dies

By Bob Goldsborough

March 26, 2025 at 1:20 p.m.

Julie Woestehoff the longtime executive director of Chicago-based Parents United for Responsible Education (PURE), has...

John Swanson was the superintendent of Oak Park and River Forest High School District 200 from 1974 until 1987. (Swanson family)

John Swanson, former OPRF superintendent, dies at 96

By Bob Goldsborough

March 25, 2025 at 1:57 p.m.

John Swanson, the superintendent of Oak Park and River Forest High School Dist. 200 from...

George Foreman, a two-time heavyweight champion boxer and Olympic gold medalist, died Friday, March 21, 2025, his family announced. He was 76.

George Foreman, two-time heavyweight boxing champion and Olympic gold medalist, dies at 76

By Greg Beacham

March 21, 2025 at 10:54 p.m.

George Foreman, the fearsome heavyweight who lost the “Rumble in the Jungle” to Muhammad Ali...

East Hazel Crest officials dedicated a park in honor of Helen M. Minnis in 2016. The park is at 174th and Center streets. (Paul Eisenberg/Daily Southtown)

East Hazel Crest Clerk Helen Minnis remembered for dedication to community

By Bob Goldsborough

March 20, 2025 at 2:11 p.m.

Helen M. Minnis was East Hazel Crest’s village clerk for 40 years, and a village...

Eugene Propes was a principal for more than two decades at Edison Junior High, now known as Edison Middle School, and at Wheaton Central High School, now known as Wheaton Warrenville South High School. (School District 200)

Eugene Propes, principal who pushed for expanded programs at Wheaton schools, dies

By Bob Goldsborough

March 19, 2025 at 11:00 a.m.

Eugene Propes, a principal at junior high and high schools in Crete and Wheaton, has...

Cindy Pritzker answers questions about the Millennium Park project with Mayor Richard M. Daley behind her. (Nancy Stone/baiduhai)

Marian ‘Cindy’ Pritzker, family matriarch, philanthropist and Gov. JB Pritzker’s aunt, dies at 101

By Bob Goldsborough

March 17, 2025 at 1:10 p.m.

Pritzker was an architecture aficionado who played a role in the creation of several cultural...

Aurora Police Officer Joe Beyke in his office at East Aurora High School in 1981. (East Aurora School District)

Column: Former Aurora police officer remembered for his work at East Aurora High School

By Tom Strong

March 17, 2025 at 2:12 p.m.

Retired Aurora Police Officer Joe Beyke passed away in February at age 81.

FILE – White House press secretary Ron Nessen speaks with reporters at the White House in Washington, April 10, 1975. (AP Photo/Henry Burroughs, File)

Ron Nessen, press secretary to President Ford, dies at 90

By Douglass K. Daniel

March 14, 2025 at 6:46 p.m.

Ron Nessen, a veteran broadcast journalist who was press secretary for President Gerald Ford and...

Joe Bean reacts as he wins his 543rd match during the Bob Baptista Invitational, Sept. 5, 2003. (Michael Hudson)

Joe Bean, Wheaton College soccer coach who won two national titles, dies

By Bob Goldsborough

March 16, 2025 at 4:28 p.m.

Joe Bean, who built Wheaton College's men's soccer program into a national powerhouse during his...

News Obituaries