Wayne F. O'Connor

Wayne F. O'Connor, 78, of Kankakee, died Wednesday (Nov. 30, 2011) at Provena St. Mary's Hospital, Kankakee, following a sudden illness. Visitation will be from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday at the Clancy-Gernon Funeral Home, Bourbonnais. A funeral Mass will be celebrated at noon Saturday at St. Martin of Tours Catholic Church, Kankakee. The Rev. Mario Quejadas will officiate. Burial will be in St. James the Apostle Catholic Cemetery, Irwin. Memorials may be made to Provena St. Mary's Hospital or to St. Martin of Tours Catholic Church. Mr. O'Connor was a farmer and formerly owned and operated O'C Micro Systems. He also ran O'Connor Country Kennels for 15 years. He was born May 20, 1933, in Kankakee, the son of Walter "Bud" and Marie Besse O'Connor. He was a four-sport letterman at Herscher High School, graduating in 1951. He was a veteran of the U.S. Army, serving from 1954-1956 in Korea. He was an active member of St. Martin of Tours Catholic Church, where he served as a Eucharistic minister, CCD teacher, and was formerly a lector. He was also an administrative committee member for the church. He was past president of the Limestone Little League, past president of the Limestone PTA, and past member of the Toastmasters. He was a volunteer at Provena St. Mary's Hospital. He was an officer on the Farm Bureau Board and on the University of Illinois Extension Board. He was a perfectionist and could fix just about anything. Surviving are his wife, the former Dolores Spangler, of Kankakee, whom he married Aug. 18, 1956, at St. James the Apostle Catholic Church, Irwin; three sons and daughters-in-law, Shawn and Sue O'Connor, of Limestone, Kevin and Deb O'Connor, of Groveland, and Brandon and Kari O'Connor, of Machesney Park; four daughters and sons-in-law, Sharon and Michael Butz, of Naperville, Kathleen and Larry Rieke, of Zionsville, Ind., Bridget and Stephen Berggren, of Chebanse, and Barbara and Tom Souligne, of Limestone; 20 grandchildren, Kory and Ben O'Connor, Amy and Lucas Butz, Rebecca (Ben) Royal, Sarah (Peter) Schlifke, Tyler and Connor Rieke, Samantha and Nathan O'Connor, Kaylee (Kyle) Gray, Kelsey and Kenzie Berggren, Tony, Jake, Angel, Nicholas and Sabrina Souligne, and Elizabeth and Matthew O'Connor; one great-grandson, William Schlifke; two stepgrandchildren, Dennis (Nikki) Memenga, and Adam Memenga; three stepgreat-grandchildren, Gabi, Kaylee and Brayden Memenga; three sisters and two brothers-in-law, JoAnn Muenstermann, of North Muskegon, Mich., Janice and Bob Montague, of Auburndale, Fla., and Mary Ellen and Michael Hogan, of Vermont; and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents and an infant brother, Joseph. Memorials may be made to Provena St. Mary's Hospital - www.provena.org/stmarys/org St.Martin of Tours Catholic Church - www.stmartinkankakee.com/

Wayne F. O'Connor

May 20, 1933 - November 30, 2011