Tessie A. Koloss, 84, of Chicago, a retired key operator, died Saturday, May 4, in Rosewood Care Center in Inverness. Ms. Koloss, who was born and raised in Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood, joined Western Electric Co. in 1937. She initially worked on the assembly line and eventually became a key operator. She retired in 1980. Ms. Koloss became a member of the Pioneers, a group of company employees that knitted socks for servicemen during World War II; crocheted bonnets for employees’ new babies; and visited elderly retirees. Ms. Koloss “was always very giving of herself,” said her sister, Emilie May. Visitation will be held from 3 to 9 p.m. Wednesday and at 9:30 a.m. Thursday in Smith-Corcoran Funeral Home, 6150 N. Cicero Ave., Chicago. Mass will be said at 10 a.m. Thursday in Queen of All Saints Basilica, 6280 N. Sauganash Ave., Chicago.
