Jean Etscheid, 67, of Mt. Prospect, an opera lover who volunteered hundreds of hours to the Lyric Opera of Chicago, died Tuesday in Northwest Community Healthcare, Arlington Heights, of complications following heart surgery.
Mrs. Etscheid attended Colorado College in Colorado Springs, then returned to the Chicago area. After she married in 1953, Mrs. Etscheid devoted herself to raising her family and volunteering in community organizations, said her daughters, Ellen Flannigan and Carol Dall.
A fan of classical music since childhood, Mrs. Etscheid taught herself about opera, her family and friends recalled.
“She had played the piano as a child,” said Flannigan. “Even as a teenager, she was an opera lover, so she would buy the classical records. It just grew and grew, and she taught us.”
Mrs. Etscheid was in her 30s when she became involved with the Lyric Opera. She was a longtime member of the opera’s Northwest Chapter, which did fundraising, publicity and public education. She was a member of the Chapter Executive Board for the opera for more than 20 years.
An outgoing, enthusiastic woman, Mrs. Etscheid continued her work with the Lyric Opera after her husband, Elmer, died in 1991.
“She loved music,” recalled Rose Spicola, who worked with Mrs. Etscheid in the Northwest Chapter for many years. “You could talk about the most obscure music or composer, and she would know about it.”
Mrs. Etscheid volunteered at Holy Family Medical Center in Des Plaines, the Infant Welfare Society in Mt. Prospect, the Ravinia Festival, the Arlington Heights Public Library and the Mt. Prospect Women’s Club.
In addition to her daughters, she is survived by three sisters, Patricia O’Reagan, Carol Melaniphy and Lois Rumely.
Mass will be said at 1 p.m. Monday in St. Raymond de Penafort Church, 300 S. Elmhurst Rd., Mt. Prospect.
