Esther C. Petre

Esther C. Petre, age 93, of Elwood formerly of Chicago and Hickory Hills, passed away peacefully on Monday, December 16, 2019. Beloved mother of Darlene (Thomas) Babiarz, Dorothy “Dottie” (Michael) Sharwarko and Barbara Schoulda; Loving grandmother of Shannon (James) Craft, Peter (Aubrey) Sharwarko, Thomas (Chavy) Babiarz, Keli (Alex) Kuypers, Brandee Sharwarko, Troy Babiarz, Trent (Patricia) Schoulda and Nathan Sharwarko; cherished great-grandmother of Haley (Daniel) Contreras, Isaac, Greta, Julian, Khepri, Jason, Avery, Evan, Matthew and Makenzie; special niece, Lizabit (Ben) Loda;

Preceded in death by her husband, Julian J. Petre; son-in-law, Randy R. Schoulda; her brother, Carlo (Ann) Cali and parents, Lorenzo and Lillian Cali.

A special thank you to Phillia Mitchell for being a wonderful caregiver and “daughter” to Esther.

She loved the Lord and her family dearly, Esther always found a way for her children to receive a Catholic education. She had a special love for animals and would take in any animal to help it flourish if hurt or sick. She was a wonderful mother and homemaker who was always there for her children. Esther was very proud of her Italian heritage and made wonderful authentic dishes, including pasta from scratch. She will be truly missed.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Salvation Army www.salvationarmyusa.org or Alzheimer’s Association www.alz.org.

A Celebration of Esther’s life will begin on Friday, December 20, 2019 with a visitation at Tezak’s Home to Celebrate Life, 1211 Plainfield Rd., Joliet, IL 60435 from 9:00 a.m. until the time of service to be held in the funeral home chapel at 11:00 a.m. Interment will follow at Mt. Carmel Cemetery, Hillside, IL.