Dr. Stephen R. Perry
After a courageous battle with stage 4 pancreatic cancer, Dr. Stephen R. Perry passed away on Tuesday, October 6, 2020.
Dr. Perry was born in Chicago on April 12, 1949, to Albert and Marian. He grew up in Hickory Hills, Illinois, with his four siblings: Mark, Gale, Dee Dee, and Lisa. After graduating from Carl Sandburg High School in Orland Park, Illinois, he received a wrestling scholarship to Indiana University and graduated with a degree in business in 1971.
After a brief career in banking, he found his calling as a chiropractor, graduating with a Doctorate of Chiropractic from National University of Health Sciences in 1978. Dr. Perry opened his first practice in Savanna, Illinois, and eventually settled in Freeport, Illinois, where he owned Perry Chiropractic Center for 32 years and raised his three children.
Throughout his life, Dr. Perry continued to pursue an interest in business, trading commodities on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and publishing two books on the stock market. He retired in 2013 and spent his retirement years living between the Philippines and the Chicago suburbs with his wife, Flora.
Dr. Perry was a man of conviction and intense curiosity. He was a faithful Catholic and a steadfast patriot. Always intrigued by the world around him, Dr. Perry was an avid reader, a student of history, and a passionate traveler.
Dr. Perry is survived by his wife, Flora, and her daughter, Samarah Aruta; his children, Alicia (Norbert) Rucinski, Emily Hatteberg (Srdjan Savanovic), and Brett Perry; his three grandchildren, Layla Rucinski, Gwenyth Rucinski, and Neven Savanovic; and the mother of his children, Kathleen Lennon.
A visitation is scheduled for Friday, October 9, 2020, from 4 to 7 p.m., at Hallowell & James Funeral Home, 1025 W. 55th St., Countryside. Group limit of 50 and social distancing guidelines will be enforced at the funeral home. Masks required. Family and friends are invited to attend Mass on Saturday, October 10, 2020, at 10:00 a.m., meeting directly at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church, 124 N. Spring Ave., La Grange.
Due to COVID restrictions, please register to attend the Mass on Saturday, October 10, 2020, on the following website: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/409044DAAA72EA2F94-stephen. A group limit of 100 will be held at the church. Please arrive a few minutes early to check in and be seated. Masks required. Unregistered guests will not be permitted into the church.
If guests are not available to attend Mass in person, a livestream will be available on date and time of service at St. Francis Xavier’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/SFXParish.LG. A Facebook account is not required to access the page.
Interment to follow at Queen of Heaven Cemetery, Hillside.
For further service information, please contact the funeral home at 708-352-6500.
Para sa Diyos, Steve, you will be missed. It was my pleasure to have known you.
Please accept my deepest condolences. Losing a parent is incredibly difficult, but during these tough times, it’s important for you and your family to try and laugh and focus on the happy memories that you‘ve shared.
– With heartfelt regards.
My thoughts and condolences are with you all.
The gate of heaven is widely open for you Steve. May God grant your eternal rest and make you one of his angel.
John 14:1-3 ESV
“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also..”
We are sad, but celebrate Stephen’s life and his home coming.
Steve and Nancy
My condolences on your loss. Uncle Steve was always good to me. He will be missed.
Rest in peace, old buddy. Wish we could have stayed in touch from our IU days.
God Bless and keep you.
Greg Kaniuk