Obituary: Richard "Skip" Skibski of Schaumburg

Richard "Skip" M. Skibski, 71, of Schaumburg was born December 22, 1941, in Chicago to Mitchell and Harriet, nee Manicki.  He passed away March 16, 2013, after a 4 year confrontation with brain cancer.

Skip was a Lane Tech and DeVry graduate, but kept returning to college for more classes in his quest for more knowledge.  He had a long and successful career in Information Technology as a business owner, software specialist and highly-sought consultant.

He met the love of his life, Deanna, nee Hansen, on a blind date and married her on November 23, 1963 at Grace Lutheran Church in Elmwood Park. A man of enthusiasm and youthful energy, Skip was game for anything his eight grandkids tried their hand at—from cheer to baseball, soccer to swimming.  When left to himself, he rollerbladed in the forest preserve, watched the White Sox on wide screen, and played Buddy Holly every chance he got.

Skip loved travel, music, amateur theater, cards, trivia and clever wordplay. He was refreshingly direct, slyly humorous and endlessly generous. 

He is survived by his wife, Deanna; his son Richard (Anita) and daughter Krista (Jeff) McClellan; grandchildren, Emma, Tom, Jack and Mike Skibski and Holly, Ryan, Tracy and Allison Bachman; his aunt Virginia Pestka; sister-in-law, Bonita Hansen; nephew, James (Elaine) Hansen and their children Alexandria and Zach; nieces, Elizabeth (Roger) Paveza and their children, Annelise and Brennan; godchildren, Jim Hansen and Lisa Medina; and many cherished cousins and friends. We loved him.

A special thanks to the amazing staff at ABMC, Dr. Tony DiGianfilippo, Dr. Ronald Shade, Dr. R. Patel, Dr. Alan Weiss and Debbie Williams and to the caregivers from Guardian Hospice, Nanci, Beth and Serge, cousin Jan, Shelly and Molly.  And a huge thank you for the warm, compassionate ministry of our own Immanuel Lutheran Church in a time of great loss. 

A memorial visitation will be held on Saturday, March 23, at Immanuel Lutheran Church, 200 N. Plum Grove Road, Palatine from 9 a.m. until time of memorial service at 11 AM. Skip's service may be viewed online at www.immanuelpalatine.org. Interment will be held privately at Union Cemetery, Palatine.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations in Skip's name to Immanuel Lutheran Church or Lutheran Church Charities, 333 W. Lake Street, Addison, IL 60101 would be greatly appreciated. 847-359-8020 or www.smithcorcoran.com.

Information provided by Smith-Corcoran Funeral Home.