North Shore Death Notices: May 5 To May 11

The following death notices were added to funeral homes serving the North Shore area in the past week. Those homes have provided obituaries for some of those that have passed away recently. Patch offers condolences to their loved ones, links to their obituaries and notices of upcoming services below.

Kelley & Spalding Funeral Home, 1787 Deerfield Road in Highland Park

Meryle J. Germaine, 94, Northbrook

Raymond James Geraci, 91, Highland Park

Victor Charles Pignatari, 89, Highwood

Carm Butts, 84, Highland Park

Bruce Stupple, 83, Deerfield

Seguin & Symonds Funeral Home, 858 Sheridan Road in Highwood

Gloria Yolanda Cervetti, 93, Highwood

Wenben Funeral Home, 320 Vine Ave. in Lake Forest

Thomas Lyle Pfeiffer, 89, Lake Forest

Thais Lynn Loeffler, 69, Lake Bluff

Victoria Jean Smith, 55, Arlington Heights

Chicago Jewish Funerals, 8851 Skokie Blvd. in Skokie

Rose Hemleben, 91, Chicago

Audrey Elaine Marx, 90, Peoria, Arizona

Richard Rhodes, 89, Lincolnwood

Charlotte Sonnenfeld, 87, Chicago

Phyllis Dolinko, 86, Highland Park

Ann Stone née White, 84, Glencoe

Ann C. Schmidt, 79, Niles

Leonard Lebovitz, 76, Valley Village, California

Albert Larry Braggs, 69, Chicago

Elaine Kaye Fifer, Rolling Meadows

Frances Futterman, Lake Zurich

Edith Gletzer, Glenview

Bertram Kramer, Chicago

Mark Gerstein

Donnellan Funeral Home, 10045 Skokie Blvd. in Skokie

Ethel "Betty" E. Eversfield, 96, Northbrook

Margaret Mary Joyce "Peggy" Regan, 93, Niles

Carita "Kiki" Corbett Rothing, 92, Wilmette

Suzanne McMurray, 90, Glencoe

Dean E. Moore, 89, Evanston

Susan Elizabeth Morrison Boatman Garland, 82, Winnetka

Nancy June "Deenie" Marchiori née Bessert, 69, Des Plaines

Haben Funeral Home, 8057 Niles Center Road in Skokie

Della M. Gallo, 98, Skokie

Henry "Hank" Stawicki, 98, Chicago

Robert L. Schmitt, 80, Skokie

Daniel J. Ciucci, 69, Skokie

Catherine M. Milbrandt née Cummings, 54, Chicago

Frank V. Polletta, 19, Carpentersville

Weinstein & Piser Funeral Home, 111 Skokie Blvd. in Wilmette

Julius Grant, 99, Chicago

Sylvia Myra Schechter née Horvitch, 98, Lincolnwood

Cecile L. Metzger, 98, Highland Park

Orrin Neiburger, 94, Boca Raton

Ladona Lichtman, 93, Lake Worth, Florida

Laura E. Stern née Speier, 92, Highland Park

Isaak Grazutis, 90, Niles

Leslie Hefter, 87, Chicago

Helaine Nudelman, 83, Skokie

Susan Helen Waxman née LeVee, 82, Buffalo Grove

Louis Bochan, 77, Chicago

Adrienne June Jacobs, 77, Skokie

Ernest A. Klein III, 61, Wheeling

Simkins Funeral Home, 6251 Dempster St. in Morton Grove

Gloria Falkovitz née Rey, 94, Morton Grove

Teodora M. Zaloga, 93, Morton Grove

Barbara Steyer née Mellor, 86, Morton Grove

N. H. Scott & Hanekamp Funeral Home, 1240 Waukegan Road in Glenview

Constance "Connie" Kilner Watson née Pitts, 93, Wilmette

Rita Rae Harte, 87, Glenview

Richard Manella, 86, Des Plaines

Featured Obituary:

Raymond James Geraci, former Highland Park Mayor and CBS sportscaster, died May 2nd of the Covid 19 virus. He was 91 years old.

A lifelong Highland Parker, graduating from Immaculate Conception grammar school, Highland Park High School, and Lake Forest College. He is survived by his wife Ann (nee Smith), and sons Marc (Sally) Geraci, Ray Geraci Jr, and daughter Laura (Billy) Cline. Loving grandfather to Jeffrey, Justin, Jayce Sorrentino, Jaime (Rob) Fuller and Lucas Geraci. Great grandfather to Brooklyn, Dominic, and Giovanni Sorrentino, Emma and Trey Fuller, and Emily Sorrentino.

While at Lake Forest College, he initiated the building of an on-campus radio station. He started his professional broadcasting career with WEEF radio in Highland Park and broadcasted the Highland Park High School football and basketball games in the early 1960’s.

After graduating from Lake Forest College, Geraci joined the Chicago Cardinals Football Club in 1951 as Public Relations Director, until the team moved to St. Louis in 1961. When the Cardinals played out of Comiskey Park, Ray is credited with creating the first NFL play by play sheets for the visiting press. He worked with the Cardinals when the NFL had only 12 teams and didn’t have the benefit of the television revenues it has today. He did the research on players and provided player evaluations in preparation for the draft. Without the technology available today, including internet access to videos and live games, evaluations were made by traveling the country and working long nights to compile the notes and grade players accordingly. He had a lifelong friendship with Stormy Bidwill who assumed the Presidency of the Chicago Cardinals in 1963. According to Bidwill, Ray was known for his work ethic, creativity, and skill set, but he was admired as a caring, thoughtful man and a great friend.

He rejoined the Cardinals Football organization in 1966 as part of the broadcasting team with Jay Randolph on KMOX, the CBS affiliate in St. Louis. He became the voice of the Cardinals in 1968. For the next four years, CBS radio used him extensively to broadcast end of season play-off games. He reached the pinnacle of radio sports broadcasting as the play by play announcer for Super Bowl VI in New Orleans in 1972.

He served as the Advertising and Public Relations Director of Anixter Brothers, Inc., from 1975 to 1997.

A popular figure, he was elected Commissioner of the Highland Park Park’s Board, and then to City Council and won election as Mayor (twice).

He originated YEA, a Highland Park non-profit benefiting youth, education and arts. He presided over the acquisition of Fort Sheridan from the Department of Defense and oversaw development of the base.

Send obituaries and images to your Patch to be included in future editions: Deerfield, Evanston, Glenview, Highland Park, Lake Bluff-Lake Forest, Niles-Morton Grove, Northbrook, Skokie, Winnetka-Glencoe-Northbrook, Wilmette-Kenilworth

Last week: North Shore Death Notices: April 28 to May 4