Calvin Selfridge, 66, a Chicago lawyer known for his lively conversation at Saturday lunches in the Chicago Racquet Club and his dedication to an agency for abused and neglected children, died May 29 of complications of cancer in the Palliative Care Center of the North Shore in Evanston. A lifelong resident of Chicago and Winnetka, Mr. Selfridge was a trust officer for the Continental Illinois National Bank from 1961 to 1971, then worked as a lawyer in private practice. From 1977 to 1990, he was corporate counsel to the Des Plaines Publishing Co., which then owned a chain of community newspapers, and served as president and a member of the board of directors. In 1982, Mr. Selfridge started working with the Lawrence Hall Youth Services, a Chicago-based social service agency providing housing, education and treatment to abused and neglected children, eventually serving as president of the board. “He would see someone and talk about the organization, and a check would arrive in the mail,” said David Eaton, chief development officer for Lawrence Hall Youth Services. A familiar face at several social clubs in Chicago, Mr. Selfridge was also known as a terrific backgammon player. “He was just one of the lovely fellows who would come to the [Racquet] Club and sort of hold forth, and make everybody feel better with a lot of things that he knew,” said Bill Wood Prince, an acquaintance whose late father was close friends with Mr. Selfridge. Mr. Selfridge was also dedicated to his family, taking care of his mother’s affairs for the last 20 years of her life, said a nephew, David Steinhoff. Other survivors include a sister, Ellen McKeown, and several nieces and nephews. Services will be at 4 p.m. June 30 in Winnetka Congregational Church, 725 Pine St.
