For 38 years, John “Jack” Sterling climbed the ranks of the Chicago Fire Department like a firefighter tearing up a ladder, eventually becoming a district chief, while also managing to maintain another career.
On most of his days off from the department, Mr. Sterling traded soot for a suit, and worked as an auditor at Continental Illinois National Bank & Trust Co.
“This means that every two days he worked 36 hours straight, and he never complained once about it,” said Mr. Sterling’s son Tim, who described his father’s work ethic.
“He is a member of the Greatest Generation and he is the greatest member of that Greatest Generation I ever met.”
Mr. Sterling, 79, died Monday, Dec. 19, at his Wood Dale home of complications from a stroke suffered in 1999.
Born in Chicago, Mr. Sterling was the youngest of seven children and lived a typical Depression childhood–money was so tight that his mother would send him to the butcher to get bones for soup, said his daughter Corrine “Corky” Sterling, an executive secretary at the Tribune.
He graduated from St. Mel High School in 1945 and soon went into the Army, although armistice in Europe and Japan crushed his hopes to fight overseas. So he began working as an auditor in Chicago, and met his future wife, Elaine, on the train through a mutual friend, his daughter said.
The couple married in 1948. His wife died in 2001.
Mr. Sterling was known not to miss work, his daughter said, leading by example when it came to professional commitment.
“He taught us to work hard,” she said. “You just did what you were supposed to do.”
“He certainly expected the best out of his kids,” his son said.
Raymond Orozco, the city’s fire commissioner from 1989 to 1996, said Mr. Sterling’s dedication was evident at the workplace. Orozco said Mr. Sterling was a mentor to him when he was fresh out of the academy.
“I know as a young firefighter I looked up to him,” he said. “He was a teacher and respected by the men. He was the kind of guy you’d try to emulate.”
Not that it was all about work. When Mr. Sterling retired from the department in 1989, he and his wife took off around the world, traveling to Mexico, Ireland, Scotland, Spain, Germany, Morocco and Australia, his daughter said. “They loved cruises and they just loved people.”
The stroke slowed Mr. Sterling down but did not crush his spirit, family members said. He and his caretaker Andy Pekala were even known to shop for cars, his daughter said with a laugh. “They were a sight to see.”
Mr. Sterling also followed his grandson’s football games–critiquing, cheering and continuing his life’s teachings on the value of hard work.
Other survivors include another son, John; two other daughters, Kathleen Whitkanack and Eileen Kampwirth; 11 grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
Visitation will be held from 3 to 9 p.m. Wednesday at Geils Funeral Home, 260 W. Irving Park Rd., Wood Dale. Mass will be said at 9:30 a.m. Thursday at St. Alexis Church, 400 W. Wood St., Bensenville.
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jageorge@tribune.com
