John S. Soltes, 87, a funeral director and owner of the Soltes Funeral Home, 2746 W. 51st St., for 57 years, also had served as a court bailiff and a Democratic precinct captain.
A resident of the Gage Park neighborhood, he died Thursday in Little Company of Mary Hospital in Evergreen Park.
Mr. Soltes was an apprentice funeral director during the Depression and opened his own funeral home in 1940. He served for 38 years as a courtroom bailiff and summons server until he stopped to work full time as a funeral director.
“He was a very generous man and he put everybody else above himself,” said his daughter, Ann Majdecki. “He was involved in everything that was going on, including all the churches and organizations in the neighborhood.”
Survivors, besides his daughter, include his wife, Kay; another daughter, Patricia Demsko; three brothers; three grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
Visitation will be 2 to 9 p.m. Saturday and Sunday in the funeral home.
Mass will be 9:30 a.m. Monday in St. Simon the Apostle Catholic Church, 5157 S. California Ave.
