John Joseph Finley, 75, a longtime Chicago grocer, died Wednesday, Feb. 13, of multiple organ failure at his Chicago home. Mr. Finley was a lifelong Chicago resident who started his career working in the meat department of a local grocery. He was in the grocery business for 42 years, starting after he finished a two-year stint in the U.S. Army during World War II. Mr. Finley moved up the ranks of grocery store work until he bought four stores of his own in Cicero and on the South Side. He owned and operated Farm Foods Inc. with his family. “He’d say to be good in business, you’ve got to learn every position,” said his daughter Kathleen. Mr. Finley had a passion for the Chicago Bears and his Irish heritage. “Every St. Patrick’s Day since we were little, he’d buy green carnations. We would have to wear them wherever we went,” said his daughter. Other survivors include Helen, his wife of 53 years; two sons, Kevin and Daniel; three other daughters, Aileen Miller, Mary Hernandez and Margaret Jarvis; and 18 grandchildren. Visitation will be from 3 to 9 p.m. Sunday in Olson/Burke-Sullivan Funeral Home, 6467 N. Northwest Highway, Chicago. Mass will be said at 10 a.m. Monday in St. Juliana Catholic Church, 7401 W. Touhy Ave., Chicago.
