Lilyan…what a wonderful friend. We connected immediately when she moved into the area in grade school. Our friendship continued through college as roommates and we even took teaching jobs in the same district. I was with Lilyan when she met her husband Lee….and she knew he was the one. We were devastated when Lilyan developed breast cancer but she never gave up being optimistic. This friendship has continued in a different way. I now am able to see her brothers' families and their children but we continue to miss Lilyan's presence.
I am Lilyan’s brother who was three years behind her in school. Consequently, Lilyan and I were at Schurz at the same time for only her senior year which was my freshman year. Prior to coming to Schurz, I had heard much about school life there and, in particular, about your class. Lilyan would share her high school experiences with our family over dinner and with me individually during mid-evening breaks when she and I would take walks together. As you may recall, her disposition and temperament were very mild; in contrast, I had a fairly intense disposition. Being with her was very calming and pleasant for me.
Lilyan loved her life at Schurz. She enjoyed her classes and excelled academically. As I recall, English was probably her favorite subject but she seemed to be interested in all her classes. She was in reserved classes and saw many of the same friends throughout the day in her classes. She always had good things to say about her many girl friends which included Joyce Schmidt, Diane Mattick, Nancy Pardini, Karen Martin, Judy Weber, Carol Engen, Karen Minarik, Nancy Soderlund, Carol Fagerman, Radmlla Milovanovich (also a neighbor), Diane Wayman, and many, many others. She found all of you to be much fun and great friends.
I can remember how sad she was when she learned of the tragic death of Wally Waddington from an internal injury resulting from football. She had gone to most of the football games and had seen him play many times. This was one of the very few sad events of her Schurz experiences.
She enjoyed the sporting events, parties, and the frequent stops for cherry Cokes with friends at El-Centro and other restaurants like the Buffalo. Her many activities included GAA, Laurels, Future Teachers, 4B&4A Girls, Lorol Tri-H-Y,Student Council, Messiah, Senior Chorus and several more.
Some of the boys that she would mention included Dennis Mergen,Paul Zitzewitz, and Al Tisdahl (all very smart), Tom Anderson (the QB), Dick Fee, Bob Lutz and many others.
Although I saw her only occasionally when we were both at Schurz, she had a significant impact on my experience there. Whenever I would get the same teacher for a class, eventually the teacher would say something like this: “I heard that you are Lilyan’s brother, I will be expecting much of you.” She set a high standard for me that was hard to emulate but it really made me proud of her.
I can recall that she wanted me to follow her in the Student Council and suggested that I enter the election. I was surprisingly easily elected and found out later that she had spread the word about my candidacy which was a great endorsement to have.
After graduating from Schurz, Lilyan went to Wright Junior College because our family lacked the funds to send her away to attend any of the many colleges she was qualified for as a member of the National Honor Society at Schurz. For the last two years of college, she went to Southern Illinois University which she paid for with summer jobs. She graduated with a very high grade point average in 1964 with a degree in Elementary Education.
She taught at an elementary school in Prospect Heights for about four years and then took a position in the book store at what is now Northeastern Illinois University. In 1970, she married Lee Sundholm, a Professor of Economics at North Park College. They purchased a home in the Edgebrook neighborhood of Chicago which was the childhood neighborhood of many of her Schurz classmates.
Tragically, she was stricken with breast cancer at that time and succumbed to that awful disease after about a three year struggle on September 9, 1977. Her loss is still the saddest and most devastating event of my life.
Lilyan and I met freshman year in Gertrude Halushka's homeroom. We kept in touch during the years following Schurz and occasionally got together when I was back in Chicago. Lil taught for a few years but found a special niche as manager of the college bookstore at Northeastern University. She loved reading and reviewing all the new books that came into the store and often said there wasn't enough time in the day to read everything she wanted to. One time Lilyan surprised me when she said she would have loved to have gone into math. I was so impressed as I was one who was intimidated by that subject. Lil did things with such grace and ease. She was often soft-spoken and reserved with a kind and gentle manner. But it was her inner strength that helped her face life's challenges. When her friend, Judy Guenther and I visited her weekly in Edgewater Hospital, Lilyan was always composed and smiling. Her strong personal faith helped us all deal with her serious illness. I am so honored to have known Lilyan and to call her a dear friend.
Joyce Schmidt (Weichelt)
Lilyan…what a wonderful friend. We connected immediately when she moved into the area in grade school. Our friendship continued through college as roommates and we even took teaching jobs in the same district. I was with Lilyan when she met her husband Lee….and she knew he was the one. We were devastated when Lilyan developed breast cancer but she never gave up being optimistic. This friendship has continued in a different way. I now am able to see her brothers' families and their children but we continue to miss Lilyan's presence.Richard Haldeman
[Posted by Dick Haldeman for Lilyan's brother]I am Lilyan’s brother who was three years behind her in school. Consequently, Lilyan and I were at Schurz at the same time for only her senior year which was my freshman year. Prior to coming to Schurz, I had heard much about school life there and, in particular, about your class. Lilyan would share her high school experiences with our family over dinner and with me individually during mid-evening breaks when she and I would take walks together. As you may recall, her disposition and temperament were very mild; in contrast, I had a fairly intense disposition. Being with her was very calming and pleasant for me.
Lilyan loved her life at Schurz. She enjoyed her classes and excelled academically. As I recall, English was probably her favorite subject but she seemed to be interested in all her classes. She was in reserved classes and saw many of the same friends throughout the day in her classes. She always had good things to say about her many girl friends which included Joyce Schmidt, Diane Mattick, Nancy Pardini, Karen Martin, Judy Weber, Carol Engen, Karen Minarik, Nancy Soderlund, Carol Fagerman, Radmlla Milovanovich (also a neighbor), Diane Wayman, and many, many others. She found all of you to be much fun and great friends.
I can remember how sad she was when she learned of the tragic death of Wally Waddington from an internal injury resulting from football. She had gone to most of the football games and had seen him play many times. This was one of the very few sad events of her Schurz experiences.
She enjoyed the sporting events, parties, and the frequent stops for cherry Cokes with friends at El-Centro and other restaurants like the Buffalo. Her many activities included GAA, Laurels, Future Teachers, 4B&4A Girls, Lorol Tri-H-Y,Student Council, Messiah, Senior Chorus and several more.
Some of the boys that she would mention included Dennis Mergen,Paul Zitzewitz, and Al Tisdahl (all very smart), Tom Anderson (the QB), Dick Fee, Bob Lutz and many others.
Although I saw her only occasionally when we were both at Schurz, she had a significant impact on my experience there. Whenever I would get the same teacher for a class, eventually the teacher would say something like this: “I heard that you are Lilyan’s brother, I will be expecting much of you.” She set a high standard for me that was hard to emulate but it really made me proud of her.
I can recall that she wanted me to follow her in the Student Council and suggested that I enter the election. I was surprisingly easily elected and found out later that she had spread the word about my candidacy which was a great endorsement to have.
After graduating from Schurz, Lilyan went to Wright Junior College because our family lacked the funds to send her away to attend any of the many colleges she was qualified for as a member of the National Honor Society at Schurz. For the last two years of college, she went to Southern Illinois University which she paid for with summer jobs. She graduated with a very high grade point average in 1964 with a degree in Elementary Education.
She taught at an elementary school in Prospect Heights for about four years and then took a position in the book store at what is now Northeastern Illinois University. In 1970, she married Lee Sundholm, a Professor of Economics at North Park College. They purchased a home in the Edgebrook neighborhood of Chicago which was the childhood neighborhood of many of her Schurz classmates.
Tragically, she was stricken with breast cancer at that time and succumbed to that awful disease after about a three year struggle on September 9, 1977. Her loss is still the saddest and most devastating event of my life.
Jon W. Anderson
Nancy Soderlund (Tokita)
Lilyan and I met freshman year in Gertrude Halushka's homeroom. We kept in touch during the years following Schurz and occasionally got together when I was back in Chicago. Lil taught for a few years but found a special niche as manager of the college bookstore at Northeastern University. She loved reading and reviewing all the new books that came into the store and often said there wasn't enough time in the day to read everything she wanted to. One time Lilyan surprised me when she said she would have loved to have gone into math. I was so impressed as I was one who was intimidated by that subject. Lil did things with such grace and ease. She was often soft-spoken and reserved with a kind and gentle manner. But it was her inner strength that helped her face life's challenges. When her friend, Judy Guenther and I visited her weekly in Edgewater Hospital, Lilyan was always composed and smiling. Her strong personal faith helped us all deal with her serious illness. I am so honored to have known Lilyan and to call her a dear friend.