Felix Donofrio Obituary

Phil 90th Birthday - July 2012 | Lemont

After driving by 1022 Florence Street Lemont many times, I saw the property owner in the garage. I got out of my car and gingerly asked him if I may walk up to his garage and have a chat. A friendly voice responded “sure”. This was the beginning of my friendship with Phil. I told him much I admired his home. He invited me for a tour. I was mesmerized by the inside of his home. A beauty built in 1958. After our initial introduction and new friendship, I often drove by, looking for the garage door to be open and see Phil watching the world go by. If he was outside, I stopped for a chat. I saw him a few weeks before his passing and we talked about how at age 87, how great it was that he was still cutting his grass on his riding lawn mower. The front yard one day and the back yard another. At age 87! It was a pleasure getting to know Phil, learning about his family and how he and wife built his Lemont home which will always be a favorite of mine. Phil, thanks for the fun chats and to Phil’s family, a life celebration!

Castlewood Terrace - Christmas 2019

98th Birthday at Rosebud Lemont July 21, 2020

I would see Phil at the Park District early in the mornings. He always greeted you with a big beautiful smile. Condolences to your family, I’m sure you are smiling down on them.

Oak Tree Michigan Avenue - Friday after Thanksgiving 2017

Wrigley Field - Easter 2017

Honor Flight August 2018 - Return to Midway Airport

Honor Flight August 2018 - Return to Midway Airport

My family and I had the pleasure of living next door to Phil for 12 years. We loved chatting with him, especially on the weekends when he would ride his lawn mower to our front door. Him and my husband would talk for hours! Phil treated our daughter as one of his grandchildren... always had money in his pocket to give her for McDonalds ice cream. He had a feisty sense of humor and we truly enjoyed getting to know him. After we moved in 2016, whenever we saw him sitting in his garage we would pull in the driveway and he would give us hugs and of course... money for ice cream!! Phil will always hold a special place in our hearts as one of our favorite neighbors ever. Our condolences to his family. We will miss him.
Laura Ryan

As Phil did not wish to have a service, I'm expressing my feelings and gratitude for him here.

I remember the first day that I met Phil it was July 2, 1983. I had met Lisa by chance in a long 4th of July weekend ferry boat line to Washington Island, Wisconsin the evening before . When I met Phil at his daughter's home, I also met Jackie, my future mother-in-law, and my future sister-in-law and brother-in-law and their spouses, I felt welcomed into Lisa's family. I first saw Phil's generosity when he invited me to join them for dinner that night at the nicest restaurant on Washington Island.

Starting on my second date with Lisa, Phil invited me to stay overnight at their home, so I didn't have to drive 35 miles back home late at night. I stayed overnight at their home each weekend for the next six years until we were married. Because of my family situation, Phil and his wife Jackie were the first husband and wife household that I had spent time with until that point in my life. Phil had built their home about the time Lisa was born and was a skilled woodworking craftsman. Also, it was the nicest and cleanest home that I had ever stayed at. He was always very generous will his skills and made furniture for each place I lived since law school.

He has continued to be very generous to our family. While as a 5'-foot-tall Italian, he would get mad at some of his relatives or at his friends at McDonald's he was never mad at me (or at least I didn't know it). That remained the case as he became crankier and crankier.

Phil was my dad’s favorite member of Lisa's family and he would put my dad at ease in stressful holiday visits our home. My dad would constantly ask when I was going to bring him to Indiana to visit him and that continued when my dad went into a nursing home. In the nursing home, my dad seldom wanted to engage with me or other visitors for more than about 15 minutes. Because of that, I was reluctant to make the four hour plus round trip to bring Phil to visit him. On my dad's final Father’s Day, I brought Phil and my dad brightened up and spent almost an hour with us. About two weeks later, my dad unexpectedly passed. This picture is of them at our home. It's one of my favorite family pictures.

Phil will always have a special place in my heart.

Bob