John “Jack” Andrew Donohue, born on December 23, 1931 in Chicago, Illinois, died on February 3, 2025 at his home in Elmhurst, Illinois. Jack led a quiet life with his wife of 64+ years, Sarah Marie Donohue (nee Rodgers) and his six children: Fran (Ron) LaFleur, Marty (Amy) Donohue, Mary (Gary) Rachford, Ann (Tim Golen) Donohue, Susie (Jude Nosek) Donohue, and Kathryn Donohue; 15 grandchildren: Megan (Nick), CJ (Rebecca), Onie (Hannah), Nikki (Jackson), Sam, Sarah, Brendan, Sean, Colin, Kathryn, Jack, James, Nora, Iris, and Simon; 4 great-grandchildren: Bella, Scarlett, Easton, and Quinn; and many cousins, including Nancy Flannery.
But hidden within that quiet life was a lifetime of adventure. Jack was raised on Harrison Avenue on the West side of Chicago by his mom, Mary, and his dad, Martin, at a time when the Illinois Prairie came right up to the street where he lived. He was a real-life Newsie in grammar school, running a newsstand for the landlord of his apartment building (which is how he followed the Cubs in the 1945 World Series–by reading the afternoon editions). He studied to be a priest at Quigley Seminary (when asked what changed his path, he confessed, it was the girls). In high-school, Jack got a private tryout for Ray Meyer and the DePaul Blue Demons. Ray instructed him to focus on his schoolwork.
While in college at Loras he qualified for his pilot’s license and began a lifetime of cross-country flying. Following college, he obtained a doctorate in inorganic chemistry from Purdue University. He applied to be an astronaut with NASA and never told his kids (“why would I brag about rejection?”), and he met an absolutely gorgeous Irish girl one weekend and had the nerve to ask her to dance. Sarah and Jack were married on May 21, 1960. Together they raised six kids and 15 grandkids in Elmhurst. Jack spent his entire career at Standard Oil / Amoco / BP as a chemist. A dedicated scientist, he earned several patents and published numerous articles.
In their retirement, Sarah and Jack flew around the country on adventures finding new places to country line dance wherever they went. Their house on Arlington Avenue became a revolving door of grandkids coming to spend time with them. The kids remember walks to Wilder Park and trips to the ice cream store with Grandpa. His final years were filled with playing games of scrabble, seeing the Cubs actually win a World Series and watching as his grandkids grew into amazing young adults with Sarah.
Jack was beloved by all and will be missed deeply. His family is comforted to know that he is not gone – he is with his parents and all his old friends from the neighborhood. Visitation Saturday, February 8, 2025, 8:00 a.m. until time of funeral service 10:00 a.m. at Gibbons Funeral Home, 134 South York Road (½ mile North of Saint Charles Road), Elmhurst. Interment Queen of Heaven Catholic Cemetery, Hillside. Live Stream of funeral service available on funeral home website. In lieu of flowers, please contribute to The Sarcoma Foundation in America, Rainbow Zebra Team/Susie Donohue, 9899 Main St #204, Damascus, MD 20872. For funeral information please call 630-832-0018 or www.gibbonsfuneralhome.com