Don Heyrman Obituary

Don Heyrman (1919 - 2010). Lived His Values. Donald Heyrman will be remembered as a man who worked hard to effect social justice in the country he loved on behalf of the religious and social ideals that he cherished. When he died on Sunday, August 8, 2010, he had lived to see the positive change that hard work has made in his community's institutions and among the thousands of people whom he touched. Mr. Heyrman, who died just a month short of his 91st birthday, lived for 50 years in Evanston, Illinois, where he was known for his selflessness, dignity and unwavering advocacy on behalf of progressive causes, primarily social justice, equality education and the civil rights of all citizens. Just before his death, Mr. Heyrman had completed a continuing education course at Northwestern University, part of his life-long commitment to education and learning. That commitment was both a personal obligation and a public calling of conscience. A graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and the Harvard Business School, he and his wife, Helen, encouraged all five of their children to use their education to effect positive change in the world. All of the couple's children have followed that example. He believed that the opportunities available to his children should be shared by all in the community, and so he turned that conviction into a model of action, serving as a delegate to the Evanston School Board Caucuses, Districts 65 and 202 and Chairman of the District 202 Caucus. He was President of the Board of Education for Evanston Township High School District 202 during a particularly tumultuous period as the community grew more inclusive where his calm solve served the community as well. Mr. Heyrman also served as Chairman of the Educational Research and Development Consortium for his local school districts and as a board member of the John XXIII School Board of Evanston. His commitment to civil rights was part of his personal life as well. When Mr. Heyrman moved his young family to Chicago's North Shore at the beginning of his career in the early days of computer technology as Regional Marking Manager with the Burroughs Corp. (now Unisys), he chose Evanston, then a community more racially and economically diverse than most in the area. The Heyrmans then bought a home in one of the City's few neighborhoods that was racially integrated and became active in that community. A strong advocate for quality schools and equal opportunity and equal participation by all members of his diverse community, Mr. Heyrman soon became President and Board Member of the Dewey Community Conference and President and Board member of the Evanston Neighborhood Conference. He also served as a delegate to the National Conference on Religion and Race and a Board Member of the Chicago Catholic Interracial Council. Much of his civic action, he said, was based on his religious faith. Don was a long time active leader of the Peace and Justice Committee for St. Mary's Parish Catholic Church in Evanston, where he also served as a lay lector and as a member of the Finance and Bereavement Committees. In pursuit of racial harmony and social justice, Mr. Heyrman served as Chairperson of the National Association of Laymen and the Chicago Conference of Laymen. He was a founding member and the first Chairman of the Conference of the Laity and founding member and Board member of the National Association of Laymen and the National Executive Committee of the Christian Family Movement. He served on the board of the Chicago Catholic Interracial Council and the Christian Family Movement. He also was a delegate of the III World Congress of the Lay Apostolate in Rome. During retirement, Mr. Heyrman continued his education and increased his civic involvement. An interest in aging policy and practice, shared with his wife, led to his work as a Board member and Treasurer for Age Options, a non-profit agency in Oak Park that serves older people and families in suburban Cook County. He was also named as a delegate to the National Silver-Haired Congress in Washington, D.C. Mr. Heyrman served on the Board of Directors of the Evanston United Way, the Evanston Liquor Control Review Board and was a member of the Budget Review Committee for the Community Fund of Chicago. Donald Heyrman was born September 10, 1919 in De Pere, Wisconsin and grew up in White Water, where his father was the publisher of the White Water Press, a weekly newspaper. His parents, Alexander and Dorthea, and sisters, Catherine Manion and Lucille Bayer, preceded him in death. After graduation from college at age 19, he served with the U.S. Navy in the South Pacific during World War II. Based on that service, the Navy sent him to the Harvard Business School of Harvard University in Boston. He left the Navy as a Lieutenant in the U.S. Naval Reserve. Don Heyrman married Helen Polcyn in 1946. Helen Heyrman and the couple's five children, eight grandchildren and one great grandson survive him. The children are: Mary Wechsler (David Selinger), Mark Heyrman (Linda Levine), Anne Szymczak (Paul), Paul Heyrman (Anita Fairbairn) and John Heyrman (Laura). The grandchildren are: Mathew Heyrman, Risa Wechsler, Kirk Sellinger, Michael Sellinger, Emily Szymczak, Christopher Szymczak, Elizabeth Heyrman and Alex Heyrman. Schafer Heyrman is the great grandson who survives him. A memorial service for Donald Heyrman will be held at Westminster Place, Ellliot Chapel, 3131 Simpson (Golf) Evanston, Illinois 60201 on Sunday, August 22, 2010 at 1:00 p.m. Luncheon from 2 to 4 p.m. at Westminster Place, James Room, 3200 Grant, Evanston. Memorials may be made to Senior Action Service Inc., 1123 Emerson, Evanston, Illinois 60201 or The Catholic Worker, 4652 North Kenmore, Chicago, Illinois 60640.