Collins, John "Jack"
A deeply devoted family man, John "Jack" Collins lived a life of simplicity, dedication, loyalty and grit. Born on October 4, 1934, Jack was the youngest of four children of Thomas and Florence Collins. When he was a boy, the family moved to Lisle, Illinois, where Thomas became the publisher of the Lisle Eagle newspaper. In his teenage years, Jack enthusiastically assisted his father at the fledgling newspaper and cut short his formal education to help the small-town newspaper stay afloat. The hours were long and the pay was little, but he took great pride in aiding his father in a tough business. At the young age of 19, he married his soulmate, Rosemarie, and began their 67-year odyssey together. From the beginning, they were laser focused on raising their family, and supporting each of their children's dreams as best they could. Borne out of necessity and enhanced by his affinity for manual labor, Jack was also the family's foreman and handyman: he built the second story of the family's home and indefinitely prolonged the life of the dilapidated family vehicle with his mechanical acumen. Raising seven children with Rosemarie, Jack continued his blue-collar career in the newspaper business working as a linotype operator for the Hinsdale Doings and John S. Swift Co. He later reached the apex of his craft when he was hired as a linotype operator at the Chicago Tribune. Though there was much financial uncertainty in his work life as automation fundamentally altered his chosen profession, his fidelity to family never waned. A model of hard work and fearlessness, Jack showed ---rather than told---his kids how to live, and work. The man who didn't complete high school assisted each of his children obtain their higher education goals. Rather than giving them a proverbial fish, he taught them to fish. He was hugely proud of each of his kids' accomplishments and reveled in large family gatherings, where his paternal sense of pride occasionally led him to indulge in a celebratory nap in the midst of the bedlam. In their later years, as financial stresses waned, Jack and Rosemarie became doting grandparents to fourteen grandchildren and one great-grand child. As a grandparent team, they flourished, and rarely missed a sporting event, birthday celebration, music recital or graduation. At sporting events, Jack was easily identified in the crowd by his signature flat cap, suspenders, and plaid button-down, as he cheered with a waggle of his eyebrows and a go-get-em thumbs up. In the lives of his children and grandchildren, Jack was routinely called upon on short notice to fix broken devices, trim unruly trees, cut unkempt grass, and hang photos. In most recent years, as they "mastered" the cell phone, Jack and Rosemarie became serial texters with their children and grandchildren and sent loving electronic birthday messages to all. Living in the same Lisle home for their entire married life, Jack and Rosemarie were low-key fixtures in the Lisle community where they could be seen walking or biking around town well into their 80s. Coming full circle, in recent years, Jack meticulously managed the warehouse building in Lisle---the very same building that housed the Lisle Eagle where he worked as a teen. Due to robust physical exercise and self-proclaimed clean living, Jack was in very good health and carefully navigated Covid with Rosemarie. Unfortunately, he began to decline shortly after an April 2022 surgery. When he entered the hospital in the last week of his life, he declined precipitously but fought valiantly to the very end. He passed into eternal life on May 19, 2022. Jack will be sorely missed by all in the Collins family, but none more so than by his life partner Rosemarie. In addition to Rosemarie, Jack is survived by his seven grateful children: Mary (Brian), Shawn (Meg), Kathy (John), Bridget (Hal), Monica (David), Patrick (Helena) and Thomas (Kelly). He dearly loved his fourteen grandchildren: Kyle, Colin, Erin, Caitlin, Cassidy, Darcy, Brendan, Kirsten, Luke, Gabrielle, Nicki, Quinn, Michaela and Reilly. He was overjoyed when his great-grandchild Wilder was born. In keeping with his understated life, funeral services will be private, though he will be warmly celebrated by his family in a manner that will bring a twinkle in his eye and a sheepish grin on his eternal face. May he rest in peace, secure in a legacy of a life well-lived that will influence generations of family members, present and future. In lieu of flowers, the family would ask that you consider a donation to Jameson Humane, an animal rescue and sanctuary (with 501c3 tax exempt status) founded by Jack's daughter, Monica, and her husband David.
www.jamesonhumane.org/donate.
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legacy.suntimes.comPublished by Chicago Sun-Times on May 26, 2022.