Father Donald J. Headley, 89, died July 16. He was pastor emeritus of Our Lady of Mercy Parish.

Born in Chicago, he attended Quigley Preparatory Seminary and the University of St. Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary before being ordained in 1958.

He served as assistant pastor of Old St. Patrick and St. Theresa, Palatine. He was a faculty member at Quigley Preparatory Seminary and director of the Cardinal’s Committee for the Spanish Speaking; he was chaplain at the St. Joseph Carondelet Child Center; and he was part of the San Miguelito Panama Mission from 1968 through 1980.

Father Headley also served as associate pastor of Mater Christi Parish, North Riverside, and St. Paul Parish (22nd Place). He was pastor at Our Lady of Mercy Parish from 1982 through 1997, and the title of pastor emeritus was bestowed on him in 2002.

Father Donald Nevins, pastor of St. Agnes of Bohemia Parish, first knew Father Headley when Nevins was a seminarian visiting the San Miguelito Mission.

“I remember one of the first weeks we were there, in 1973, he invited us to go with him to visit a community and its school,” Nevins said. “We piled into his Volkswagen Beetle, drove on dirt roads to a river crossing, left the car there and walked across the small bridge to get us close to the community. The kids rushed him as he got closer, and we all sat with them, disrupting their class for a good half-hour. My time there with him was really formational for me.”

According to Nevins, Father Headley’s passion was to teach laypeople, especially after the Second Vatican Council: He truly believed in the focus of Vatican II and did what he could in the archdiocese and other places to raise up the expectations of laypeople in the church to fulfill their call to leadership, Nevins said.

Father Gary Graf, pastor at Sts. Paul, Agnes and Kieran Parish in Chicago Heights, was the homilist at the funeral Mass for Headley. “Donald Headley set the bar for all priests to achieve in ministry,” Graf said. “He loved everyone he ever met. His life and the Gospel of Jesus Christ were perfectly compatible. He taught teachers, catechists, ministry leaders, priests and bishops how to live and serve as Jesus did. He did so in his every word and especially in how he lived and taught us how to live our lives.”

Deacon Dennis L. Colgan, 77, died July 18. He was the retired associate director of the Office for the Permanent Diaconate and was ordained in 1985.

Deacon Colgan served at St. Mother Theodore Guerin Parish.

He is survived by his wife, Margaret; children Kevin Colgan, Daniel Colgan and Megan Black; six grandchildren; and siblings Laurene Strum, Thomas Colgan and Janet Lapen.

Providence Sister Annette (Edna Carolyn) Schipp, 99, died July 14 in St. Mary-of-the-Woods, Indiana.

Born in Indiana, she entered the Sisters of Providence in 1940 and professed final vows in 1948.

Of her 81 years as a Sister of Providence, she ministered for 49 years in education in elementary schools in Indiana and Illinois, before serving as a receptionist and parish and community volunteer.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she taught at Immaculate Conception (Talcott Avenue) (1948-1953). 

Sister of St. Casimir Kathleen Smith, 79, died July 14 in Lemont.

Born in Chicago, she graduated from Maria High School in 1959. She made her first vows in 1962 and her perpetual vows in 1967.

She served as an elementary school teacher in Illinois, Minnesota, Ohio and California and as a high school art teacher in Illinois and Michigan, receiving awards for her work and that of her students. In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she began her ministry teaching first and second grades at Sts. Peter and Paul (1962-1966, 1971-1973); Our Lady of Vilna (1969-1970); and St. Anthony, Cicero (1974-1977). She then taught art at Maria High School (1977-1995).

Sister of St. Joseph-Third Order of St. Francis Magdalene Kabat, 86, died July 19.

She was in religious life for 67 years and had been a dedicated teacher in Indiana and Illinois, and she served as principal of St. Mary of Czestochowa, Cicero.

She is survived by siblings Lorraine Gorski, Melanie Cholewa, Robert Kabat and Patricia Harp.

Father John B. Peng, 94, died June 11 in Sichuan, China. He was a former chaplain of St. Elizabeth Hospital.

Father Peng was born  in China and was ordained there in 1955. After ordination, he served in Taiwan until 1960, and then for a short term in Malaysia. He moved to Chicago and was incardinated in the archdiocese in 1989.

Father Peng served in the Archdiocese of Chicago at St. John Nepomucene Parish and as chaplain at St. Elizabeth Hospital until he retired in 1994. After his retirement, Father Peng did missionary work in Sichuan, China.

“We are so thankful Father Peng lived a long life and did so much to help the Catholic Church in China,” said Peng’s niece Stephanie Leung.

Father Michael J. Bowler, 90, died June 29. He was the former associate pastor of St. Turibius Parish.

Father Bowler was born in Chicago and attended Quigley Preparatory Seminary and the University of St. Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary before being ordained in 1957.

He was assistant pastor of St. Thomas More, Resurrection (Jackson Street), Visitation and St. Eugene. He was associate pastor of St. Bernardine, Forest Park; St. Cornelius; St. Mary of Perpetual Help; and St. Turibius. He retired in 2001.

Father Bartholomew J. Juncer, pastor of St. Odilo Parish in Berwyn, was a good friend of Father Bowler.

“He was very dedicated as a priest to the people of God. Even in his 80s, he would visit people in hospitals, visit the sick to bring Communion and to anoint them, he would come to church to celebrate Mass,” Juncer said.

Deacon Paul Bovyn, 91, died July 16 at Jesse Brown VA Medical Center. He was ordained in 1972 and served at St. Francis Xavier and then Resurrection Parish (Francisco Avenue).

Born in Chicago, Deacon Bovyn attended Lane Tech High School before joining the U.S. Army and serving in the Korean War. He was a recipient of the Purple Heart.

He married his late wife, Eugenia (Jeannie), in 1952.

He was ordained in the first class of permanent deacons in the Archdiocese of Chicago and served at St. Francis Xavier, which became part of Resurrection Parish in 1991. He officiated at many baptisms and weddings and led holy hours even after he retired.

He was an associate of the Sisters of St. Francis of Joliet for 40 years.

He is survived by his children Michael Bovyn, Cynthia Beck, Gregory Bovyn, Glen Bovyn, Laura Mathis, Timothy Bovyn and Paula Shaughnessy; 13 grandchildren; and 11 great-grandchildren.

Sinsinawa Dominican Sister Eileen (Mary Ellen) Quinn, 87, died June 24 in Hazel Green, Wisconsin.

Born in Chicago, Sister Eileen made her first profession in 1964 and her perpetual profession in 1970. She taught for 51 years in New York, Wisconsin, Illinois and Pennsylvania.

Sinsinawa Dominican Sister Roslyn (Adeltrude) Snyder, 92, died June 25 in Hazel Green, Wisconsin.

Born in Galena, Sister Roslyn made her first religious profession in 1949 and her perpetual profession in 1952. She ministered in education as a teacher, assistant principal and principal. Sister Roslyn also served as director of social justice ministry, in parish ministry, as director of religious education and the finance officer for the Dominican Sisters of Sinsinawa Southern Province.

She served in Illinois, the District of Columbia, Wisconsin, Alabama and Mississippi.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, Sister Roslyn taught at St. Richard (1949-1954) and Visitation (1974-1975).

Sister of St. Joseph-Third Order of St. Francis Constance Szymandera, 85, died June 27.

She was a member of the congregation for 67 years.

Sister Constance was an elementary school teacher in Illinois and Indiana and a special education teacher in the Bartlett Learning Center.

She is survived by her sister, Rita T. Klimczak.

Benedictine Sister Mary Frances (Ellen Marie) Schermerhorn, 91, died July 6.

Born in Chicago, she belonged to St. Timothy Parish and St. Francis Xavier Parish, Wilmette, before graduating from St. Scholastica High School in 1948. After one year at St. Teresa’s College in Winona, Minnesota, she entered the Benedictine Sisters of Chicago in 1949. She professed first vows in 1951 and perpetual vows in 1954.

Sister Mary Frances taught in schools in the Diocese of Pueblo, Colorado and in the Archdiocese of Chicago including Queen of All Saints; Mother of God, Waukegan; St. Hilary; St. Lambert, Skokie; and St. Scholastica High School. She was principal of St. John Nepomucene and St. Lambert, Skokie.

She supervised the food service at St. Scholastica Monastery and was treasurer and business manager for St. Scholastica monastery and high school. She had served as teacher and finance officer of the British Infant School, Skokie, since the 1990s.

Deacon Donald J. Wehling, 86, died June 25. He was ordained in 1987 and served at St. Hilary and then St. Padre Pio Parish.

He also served as a hospital chaplain at Holy Family Health Center, Holy Family Hospital, Condell Medical Center, St. Francis Hospital, and chaplain for the St. Jude Society. He was also a fourth-degree Knight of Columbus.

He is survived by his wife of 64 years, Maryl; his children Virginia Stangeland, Lynne Wehling-Fester, Donna Pannke, Andrew Wehling, Barbara Lowery and Stephen Wehling; 16 grandchildren; nine great-grandchildren; and his sister, Patricia Medley.

Adrian Dominican Sister Maureen (Marie Timothy) Fay, 87, died May 27 in Adrian, Michigan.

Born in Chicago, she graduated from Visitation High School. She was in the 68th year of her religious life.

She ministered elementary, secondary and college education in Illinois and Michigan.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she was director of evaluations at DePaul University (1974-1975) and dean of continuing education (1975-1979) and dean of graduate studies (1979-1983) at Saint Xavier College.

Precious Blood Father Robert Schreiter, 73, a member of the faculty of Catholic Theological Union in Chicago since 1974, died June 1 at his home in Chicago.

“The CTU community grieves profoundly the loss of our longtime colleague,” said Dominican Sister Barbara Reid, president of CTU. “His outstanding contributions are too numerous to list. His work on reconciliation, in particular, was unparalleled, both in his international accompaniment of church leaders in peace building and in teaching standing-room-only crowds of students every year.”

During his years at Catholic Theological Union, he spent nine years as vice president and academic dean (1977-1986) and was instrumental in founding its doctor of ministry program, Reid said. He was also the founding director of CTU’s Bernardin Center, which focuses on reconciliation and peacemaking, interreligious dialogue, leadership development for the Catholic Church, the consistent ethic of life and the search for common ground in the church and the world.

Born in Nebraska, he entered the Missionaries of the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ in 1961. He earned his doctorate in theology from the University of Nijmegen in the Netherlands  and was ordained a priest in 1975.

Immediately after his ordination, he joined the faculty at Catholic Theological Union. He remained on the faculty until May of this year, when he retired and was named professor emeritus.

Father Schreiter also was active in the leadership of his religious congregation, serving on its senate, as its vice provincial director and on the general council of the worldwide congregation. He also served as formation director, guiding candidates toward ordination as a priest or profession as a religious brother.

He is survived by two sisters, Mary Liesemeyer and Jean Taylor, and three brothers, Thomas, James and John Schreiter.

Divine Word Missionary Father Lawrence Nemer, 88, an early instructor at Catholic Theological Union, died June 9 in Australia.

A missionary in Australia for 25 years, Father Nemer was lector emeritus at Yarra Theological Union in Box Hill, Melbourne, Australia.

Born in Chicago, he entered the Society of the Divine Word high school seminary at East Troy, Wisconsin. He professed religious vows in 1952 and was ordained in 1960.

Father Nemer began his teaching career as a seminarian, teaching English literature at the Brother Candidates’ High School at Techny, Illinois, in 1958. After earning a licentiate in missiology at the Gregorian University in Rome in 1962, he returned to Techny and taught missiology, church history and liturgy at Divine Word Seminary.

In 1970, Father Nemer became a leader in transitioning students from St. Mary’s Seminary at Techny to CTU. For the next two decades, he taught church history at CTU and was named a full professor in 1985.

In 1991, he became a lecturer in church history and mission studies at Yarra Theological Union. Apart from six years as president of the Missionary Institute London in England, he devoted the rest of his career to Yarra Theological Union.

During the summers, he taught courses in Vietnam, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea and the United States.

He is survived by one sister, Grace Dossing.

Sinsinawa Dominican Sister Germaine Scholl, 98, died June 15 in Hazel Green, Wisconsin.

Born in Iowa, she made her first religious profession in 1941 and her perpetual profession in 1944. She served her Dominican Congregation as a culinary artist for 58 years and helped make Mass breads for one year. She served in Wisconsin, Illinois, Nebraska and Iowa.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, Sister Germaine served in the culinary arts at Immaculate Conception Convent (1949-1951); St. Thomas the Apostle Convent, (1969-1970); St. Vincent Ferrer Convent, River Forest (1970); Visitation Convent (1974-1977); and St. Basil Convent (1977).

She is survived by a sister, Dominican Sister Eldena Scholl.

Franciscan Sister of Chicago Mary Dorothea (Frances) Micek, 96, died June 18.

Sister M. Dorothea entered the congregation from Omaha, Nebraska, in 1939, made her first vows in 1943 and made her final vows in 1948.

She ministered in Illinois, Nebraska and South Dakota as a nurse, anesthetist and administrator.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she ministered at St. Joseph Home (1942-1943); Guardian Angel Day Care Center (1944-1946); St. Stanislaus Bishop and Martyr (1946-1947); Palos Community Hospital (1978-1982, 1987-1995), Palos Heights; Mother Theresa Home, Lemont (1983-1987); the congregation motherhouse, Lemont (1995-1996, 1999-2021).

She retired in 2012 and continued to reside at the motherhouse.

Mercy Sister Elizabeth “Betty” (Mary Eugenius) Burns, 96, died June 21.

Born in Chicago, she attended Catholic schools and graduated from Mercy High School/St. Patrick Academy in 1943. She entered the Sisters of Mercy in Des Plaines two years later.

Sister Betty served at several Illinois and Wisconsin parochial schools for more than 50 years. She was principal of St. Joan of Arc School, Skokie; St. Catherine of Siena, Oak Park; and St. Stephen Protomartyr, Des Plaines. She also served at Resurrection, St. Finbarr, St. Malachy, Little Flower and Mother McAuley High School in Chicago; St. Mary, Evanston; and St. Mary, Riverside.

In 2002, Sister Betty left teaching and began volunteering in music ministry with people living in assisted living and Alzheimer’s facilities.

Adrian Dominican Sister Jean Irene McAllister, 92, died June 25 in Adrian, Michigan.

Born in Detroit, she was in the 74th year of her religious profession.

Sister Jean Irene ministered in Illinois, Ohio, Florida and Michigan.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she taught at St. Mary Mount Carmel (1948-1951) and St. James, Maywood (1951-1953).

She is survived by a sister, Catherine Brown.