La Grange Firefighter's Widow Struggles For Benefits: Resident

LA GRANGE, IL — The widow of a late La Grange firefighter is struggling to get survivor benefits as the process has become adversarial, a family friend told the Village Board this week.

La Grange resident John Travis was speaking up for the family of his lifelong friend, Adam Van Every, who took his own life last May, Travis said. He said Van Every's widow, La Grange resident Lauren Pray, has yet to get survivor benefits.

Travis said he grew up with Van Every in a small town in Michigan, but both ended up in La Grange. Van Every and Pray had two children.

Travis, an attorney, said he tried to help Pray with her pension application at first, but they turned it over to a lawyer who specializes in pension work.

Under state law, benefits are due to a surviving spouse where a firefighter's death is by accident or illness. That provision is apparently the source of the differences.

"This is 2022. I think at this time it's accepted universally that mental illness qualifies as an illness, and I don't know of any other cause of suicide than mental illness," Travis said.

At her own expense, Pray hired a psychologist to interview her and other adult family members and write a report to establish that Van Every was mentally ill, Travis said.

For its part, the village's fire pension board decided to hire its own psychologist, he said. And the board's attorney has expressed an interest in taking depositions of Pray and other adult family members, Travis said.

He said it was inappropriate to drag the family through the extended process for benefits to which Pray is entitled.

"If anybody here has been affected by suicide, you know that it's a wound that never heals, and it's been less than a year," Travis said. "It's raw for the family. It's raw for me. I think it's a waste of village funds, waste of resources, waste of time to interview the family members."

Travis said Van Every served the village with honor and distinction for a number of years.

"I don't know what happened to cause him to leave us. But I do know he must have been in great, great pain," Travis said. "What I'm asking is that the board ensure the pension board does the right thing and allow Lauren to receive her survivor benefits."

In response, Village President Mark Kuchler agreed Van Every served with honor and distinction.

"It's not our role to tell the pension board what to do, and so we won't be getting involved as far as what the pension board decides on that matter," Kuchler said.

The October and December agendas for the pension board indicate Pray's application was discussed.

The pension board's president could not be reached for comment.