Obituary of Margaret Schmitz

Schmitz, Margaret Christopher (nee Horrigan) Born April 30, 1959 to John H. and Margaret D. Horrigan in Joliet. Margaret Christopher Schmitz passed away peacefully in the early hours of April 25, at Provena St. Joseph Medical Center in Joliet, attended to by her loving husband and family. "Margy," as she was known to those who loved her, is survived by her husband Karl A. Schmitz, who brought joy and contentment to their eight years together in Minooka, and by her three adored children: Thomas G. Christopher of Columbia, MO, John Gabriel Christopher of Joliet, and Margaret Courtney Christopher of Las Vegas, NV. Margy is also survived by her father John H. Horrigan, of Joliet; her bereaving sisters Anne Horrigan (Amy Szczepaniak), Betsey (Tim) Carlin and Kate (Doug) Mohundro, all of Joliet; and her brothers Peter Horrigan and Stephen Horrigan of Joliet, and Bill Horrigan of Columbus, OH. Also surviving are Margy's father and mother-in-law Clarence F. and Brenda Schmitz of Joliet, and sisters-in-law Karol (Fred) Herink and Kristin Schmitz of Minooka, as well as numerous nieces, nephews, great-nieces, great-nephews and cousins. She was preceded in death by her mother Margaret, her uncles William Dailey and James Horrigan, her brother Patrick, and her nephew Eliot Horrigan. Margy attended St. Paul the Apostle Grade School, St. Francis Academy, and William Woods College in Fulton, MO. While living in Missouri, Margy's greatest joy was in raising her three children. Tommy, Gabe and Courtney provided her with unending inspiration, and enough stories and precious memories to last a lifetime. She also developed a mastery of Southern cooking, which, after returning to Joliet in 2002, she brought to her work at her sister Kate Mohundro's restaurant, Truth, where she earned a well-deserved reputation as an elegant and inventive "master of soup." Margy's innate gift for effortlessly gracious hospitality is cherished by all who knew her, especially in her traditional Christmas Eve gatherings at her and Karl's home in Minooka. The sixth of eight children, Margy grew up in a large Irish-American household surrounded by siblings and close cousins, which instilled in her the value of deeply nurturing warm and welcoming family ties, values she has passed on to her children and for which her entire surviving family will eternally and gratefully remember her. A Memorial Mass for Margaret Christopher Schmitz will be celebrated on Saturday, April 28, 2012 at 9:30 a.m. at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church. Margy's remains will be laid to rest at Resurrection Cemetery, alongside those of her maternal grandfather, Aloysius P. Dailey. Friends may gather Saturday morning at St. Paul from 8:30 a.m. until time of her funeral Mass. Arrangements by: FRED C. DAMES FUNERAL HOME 3200 Black at Essington Rds, Joliet For information (815) 741-5500