Chicago

  This my aunt, Dolores DiLegge. She is my Mother's younger sister. I love this picture of her. She passed away a couple months before my mother, Lorraine. Her and my mother were very close, especially when they both were battling breast cancer. They supported each other even though they lived thousands of miles apart. She has 3 daughters Lynn, Laurel and Janet. I stopped by Laurel's house while in Chicagoland. She fed me a fantastic lunch and sent me off with a care package of healthy snacks for the road.
My cousins wrote the following about their Mom.
 

Our Mom, Dolores DiLegge
It is difficult to try and sum up a person’s life in a few short paragraphs, especially when that person was the most important person in our lives. Mom, Dolores, was born on Valentines Day, February 14, 1935. She was the second daughter after Lorraine, before Mary Anne and Jeannie to John and Anastacia Galdik.

Mom had an active childhood and she often talked of the dreams her family had for a better life together. She was an excellent student and attended Xavier College on an academic scholarship.
  
While purchasing her first car, a convertible, she met Joseph DiLegge. Not only did he sell her a car he sold her on himself also. Mom and Dad married on her 22nd birthday and had 3 daughters, Lynn, Laurel and Janet.

Widowed after 5 short years of marriage, in 1962, with 3 young girls to raise, she worked for the #1 advertising agency in Chicago, J. Walter Thompson. Her career blossomed in her 35 years there. Her offices were in some of the most well known Chicago locations; Wrigley, Hancock and Bloomingdale buildings.

It was important to our Mom that we got to experience the culture of the Chicagoland area. She would take us on many mini excursions to see the local sights. Mom also loved to travel abroad. She was fortunate to be able to do this with her sisters as she got older. After retiring, at 62, she would spend her winters in LaJolla, California. This was the place she wished we would all move to with her.
   Dolores(l) and her sisters Mary Anne(c) and Lorraine(r)

Grammy, as she was known to her grandkids, had a special relationship with each of her grandchildren. She would always make time just for the kids. It was not unusual to see her playing with one grandchild or another at parties instead of being with the adults.

Mom was diagnosed with Inflammatory Breast Cancer (IBC) in May 2001. Her daily calls from her sister, Lorraine, who was battling breast cancer also, helped get her through a year of extensive treatments. She remained cancer free for over 3 years, but during that time was diagnosed with Parkinson’s. In April 2005 her cancer returned and she died on June 6, 2005.

Inflammatory Breast Cancer (IBC) is the rarest form of breast cancer. Only 1 to 6% of all new breast cancer diagnosis is IBC. It is often misdiagnosed as a bug bite or rash.

We were blessed to have had her for 4 years after her diagnosis and cherished every moment we had with this extraordinary woman. Her generosity to others, strength for us, friendship to all is what we will remember most. We will love you forever.

Lynn, Laurel & Janet (The DiLegge Girls)