Elisabeth R. Oldaker

Elisabeth (Elissa) Rose Oldaker, born March 26, 1943, in Chicago, Illinois, passed away peacefully at Rush Copley Medical Center in Aurora, Illinois, on August 20, 2022. She resided most recently in Yorkville, Illinois, but she was a longtime resident of Homewood, Illinois. She grew up in the South Shore neighborhood of Chicago, where her parents owned and ran Matushek Hardware.

Elissa is preceded in death by her beloved husband, Joseph Wilson Oldaker, to whom she was happily married for forty-six years; her parents, Elsie and Paul (I) Matushek; her sister and best friend, Sister Cecile Matushek; her brothers, John W. and Paul (II) Matushek; her sister, Margaret Gibbons; her goddaughter, Lynn Matushek; and her mother-in-law, Jessie M. Olnick.

Elissa is survived by her children, Yvonne Cecile Oldaker; Adam (Jon) Oldaker; Joseph Paul (Emilia) Oldaker, Sr.; and Scott (Beth) Oldaker. She is also survived by her much-loved grandchildren, Rhoda Jessie, Morgan Wren, Eloise Beatrix, Andromeda Cecile, Emma Rose, Abraham Wilson, Wynona Sinead, and Joseph Paul, Jr. (baby Jay).

As a young woman, Elissa became a novice for the Sisters of St. Francis of Penance and Christian Charity. She ultimately decided that she wanted to have a family, so she left the convent before taking her final vows. She met her husband in the library at Homewood-Flossmoor High School, where she began her career teaching chemistry in Illinois. She left H-F to raise her children and later returned to teaching at Crete-Monee High School, from where she retired. Elissa had a history of volunteerism throughout her life, most recently for the Illinois Retired Teachers Association. She also tutored countless students and relatives who never would have understood science and math without her.

Elissa held a B.S. in chemistry from Cardinal Stritch University and an M.S. in chemistry from Marquette University. Her master's thesis was published in a peer-reviewed chemistry journal. In addition to her professional and academic accomplishments, she took great pride in her family and her roles as a wife, mother, and grandmother. She was a longtime member of St. Anne's Catholic Church in Hazel Crest, Illinois, and later became a member of St. Patrick Parish in Yorkville, Illinois.

Resting at the Tews-Ryan Funeral Home, 18230 Dixie Highway, Homewood, Illinois, Friday, August 26, from 3:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. Funeral Saturday, August 27, 9:15 a.m. to St. Anne's Church, 16801 Dixie Highway, Hazel Crest, Illinois. Mass 10:00 a.m. Interment Assumption Cemetery. Memorials may be made to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, https://www.stjude.org/donate/. For info, call 708-798-5300 or go to http://www.tews-ryanfh.com/.