Deacon Robert Brauch, 89, of Lake Barrington died Dec. 14. He was ordained in 1989 and served at St. Anne Parish in Barrington.

He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Mary Helen; children Mary Afflerbach, Claire Quinn, Jayne Haller, Kristin Plescia, Beth Gavin, Kay Carley and Marty, John and Rob Brauch; 29 grandchildren; 14 great-grandchildren; and his sister, Jean Scott.

Deacon Arthur Nylen, 87, died Dec. 19. He was ordained in 1984 and served at St. Jude the Apostle Parish in South Holland.

He served as the parish’s director of social ministry from 1995 to 2011 and was a member of the Holy Name Society, a minister of care, a fourth-degree Knight of Columbus Genoa Council and a third-degree Knight of Peter Claver. He served on the Catholic Charities Southside Advisory board and was the first co-recipient of Catholic Charities Compassion in Action Award in 2003.

Deacon Nylen also was a U.S. Army Korean War veteran.

He is survived by his wife of 64 years, Beverly; children Thomas, Michael, Robert and Terri Ann Nylen, and Mary Lou Gutrich; 11 grandchildren and 4 great-grandchildren; and his sister, Rose Pett.

Deacon Donald Daum, 94, died Dec. 26. He was ordained in 1986 and served at St. Germaine Parish in Oak Lawn.

He was a World War II veteran, retired from Illinois Bell and volunteered with the Society of St. Vincent de Paul.

He is survived by his wife, Joan, and his children Donald Jr., Richard, David, Thomas, James, Robert, Philip, John and Timothy Daum; Mary Knight and Juliana Hynes; 35 grandchildren; 35 great-grandchildren; and his brother James and sister Alice Majewski.

Deacon Stephen Norys, 82, died Dec. 31. He was ordained in 1989 and served at St. Theresa Parish, Palatine.

He is survived by his wife of 61 years, Gail Wesolek Norys; his children Steve, Jerry and Greg Norys; Lorrie Mammarella; and Mary Kaye Pollard; 20 grandchildren; and 9 great-grandchildren.

School Sister of St. Francis Anna Marie (Agnes) Dressler, 88, died Dec. 13 in Milwaukee.

Born in Wisconsin, she was received into the School Sisters of St. Francis in 1946 and made her final vows in 1954.

Sister Anna Marie ministered in education in the Archdiocese of Chicago for seven decades. She taught at St. Martin (1948-1956) and Our Lady of Charity, Cicero (1956-1964); served as principal at St. Maria Goretti, Schiller Park (1964-1968); and taught at St. Mary, Buffalo Grove (1968-1969), and St. Catherine Labouré, Glenview (1969-1970). In 1970, Sister Anna Marie began her ministry in Barrington at St. Anne parish and school, where she served as teacher (1970-1984), religion coordinator (1984-1992), RCIA director (1992-2015), and volunteer (2015-2018). 

Sister Anna Marie is survived by six sisters: Alma Moris, Claire Churchill, Rose Koppen, Catherine Oberfoell, Agnes Simpson and Bernadette Thole. She is survived by three brothers, James, Bernard and Clement Dressler.

Mercy Sister Emily Mary (Joan) Kemppi, 84, died Nov. 22.

Born in Waukegan, she grew up in North Chicago. She entered the Sisters of Mercy in 1952.

Sister Emily began her life of ministry in 1957 as a high school teacher, teaching Latin, English and logic for nearly 10 years at Mother McAuley High School in Chicago, as assistant principal at Mercy High School in Chicago and as co-principal of Unity High School when Mercy and Loretto high school merged. She also taught at Mercy High School in Milwaukee.

She then became mental health occupational therapist at Mercy Center in Aurora, Illinois, and Mercy Hospital in Chicago until 1992.

She later served as an aide to sisters living at McAuley Convent while working as support staff for Network for Mercy Education in Chicago.

In 2014, she moved to Mercy Circle.

School Sister of St. Francis Evelyn Trapp, 88, died Nov. 29 in Greenfield, Wisconsin.

Born in Wisconsin, she entered the School Sisters of St. Francis in 1947 and made her final vows in 1955.

Sister Evelyn ministered in education in Illinois, Kentucky and Wisconsin for more than seven decades. In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she taught at St. Peter School, Skokie (1950-1959). 

Sister Evelyn is survived by four brothers: Gilbert, Philip, Robert and John.

School Sister of St. Francis Doris Mary (Kathlyn) Zander, 86, died Dec. 9 in Milwaukee.

Born in Wisconsin, she entered the School Sisters of St. Francis in 1950 and made her final vows in 1958.

Sister Doris Mary ministered as a musician in Illinois and Wisconsin for more than six decades. In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she served at St. Clara (1952-1955), St. William (1955-1962); and St. Bernardine, Forest Park (1962-1963). 

Sister Doris Mary is survived by four sisters: Franciscan Sister Felissa, Lois Severson, Kathleen Statz and Marion Dommer.

Sinsinawa Sister Rita Rae (Raffaello) Burger, 85, died Dec. 24 in Sinsinawa, Wisconsin.

Born in Madison, Wisconsin, she made her first religious profession in 1956 and her perpetual profession in 1959. She ministered in Illinois, Montana, Wyoming, California, Minnesota, Washington and Wisconsin.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, Sister Rita Rae taught at St. Sabina (1956-1959), Epiphany (1967-1970), and St. Thomas the Apostle (1987-1996), where she also served in the media center (1996-2000). Sister Rita Rae also served in the library at St. Basil School (1996-2000).

Sister of St. Casimir Mary Balkus, 93, died Dec. 26.

A Chicago native, Sister Mary entered the Sisters of St. Casimir in 1946 from All Saints Parish (Roseland) and made her final vows in 1953.

She taught in schools in Illinois and Maryland.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, she taught at Sts. Peter and Paul (1948-1952), Our Lady of Vilna (1953-1954), St. George (1959-1960), and Maria High School for 35 years (1960-1967, 1976-2004). She moved to Franciscan Village, Lemont, in 2014, where she served in the ministry of prayer and presence.