The last time Monique Norington-Joseph saw her uncle Maurice was three months ago, when he traveled an hour north from his home in Aroma Park to visit a sick loved one in Chicago. The trip was so completely indicative of who he was, his niece recalled. He was someone you couldn’t help but like — gentle and humble and kind.
It hasn’t sunk in that she won’t see him again.
Authorities confirmed Thursday that Maurice Norington died in Aroma Park amid Tuesday’s destructive storms. His death marks Illinois’ first in connection to the devastation, following two deaths confirmed in Indiana.
Reached by phone Friday afternoon, his niece told the Tribune her family was in shock.
“It’s such a sad loss,” she said. She choked back tears as she spoke from Aroma Park near her uncle’s storm-stricken home. Seeing the damage and destruction — and hearing from the neighbors and community members who knew her uncle — has made the loss feel more real, she said.
Shortly before 4:30 p.m. Thursday, nearly two days after tornadoes and hail ripped through Illinois and Indiana, Kankakee County officials found a victim in a damaged home in Aroma Park, bringing the storms’ death toll to three, after an elderly couple was found dead in northwest Indiana.
Late Friday morning, the Kankakee County sheriff’s office identified the person found as 65-year-old Norington. He was initially located by employees of a service company working in the area. Preliminary indications show Norington died of injuries from the storms, the sheriff’s office said.
“Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family, friends, and neighbors of Mr. Norington,” Kankakee Sheriff Mike Downey said in a statement.
Norington grew up on a farm with four siblings in Pembroke Township, about 14 miles west of Aroma Park, his niece said. He grew up raising horses and developed a passion for riding from a young age. Norington-Joseph said her uncle went on to serve in the military and later worked as a groomer and trainer for the now-shuttered Arlington International Racecourse.
For their family, her uncle was “a blessing,” Norington-Joseph said. She especially knew the impact of his humility firsthand — he paid for her to go to college.
“(He’s) the main reason why I was able to have such success in my own personal life,” she said. She’ll always be grateful to him, she continued.
Her uncle loved all things sports, was a fan of ’70s and ’80s music and believed deeply in helping people, Norington-Joseph said.
“His presence and warmth is just something that I think everybody knew,” she said.
When weather officials started warning about the severity of Tuesday’s storms, Norington-Joseph and her family immediately started putting out calls to see if her uncle was OK, she said. They couldn’t reach him.
In the days since, Norington-Joseph said she and her family have come to learn that a large tree came through the roof of her uncle’s bedroom.
“It looks like it struck him in the hallway as he was trying to probably get away,” she said.
Gov. JB Pritzker, who spent Thursday afternoon in Aroma Park assessing devastation and discussing aid, said he was saddened by the news in a post to social media.
“My heart breaks for this individual’s family and the whole community,” he wrote on X. “May their memory be a blessing.”
Nearly 500 structures in Kankakee County were damaged by the storms, according to Pritzker, who promised during his visit to Aroma Park that state officials would seek federal aid to help those most affected.
National Weather Service meteorologists have reported that three tornadoes hit Livingston and Kankakee counties in Illinois and Newton, Jasper and Starke counties in Indiana. Weather officials rated the tornado that swept through Kankakee as an EF3, with wind speeds between 136 and 165 mph. The most severe type of tornado is an EF5.
Kankakee officials continued to assure on Friday that search and rescue efforts are ongoing. Officials said they had no known missing people they were actively looking for but that additional efforts are underway to ensure “each and everyone is completely accounted for.”
Kankakee first responders were employing K-9 dogs, specialized drones, and on-the-ground search-and-rescue teams to bolster their reach. Starting Monday, a multiagency resource center will be open to affected residents in Aroma Park, where community members will have access to a range of services and assistance, from housing and mental health support to food access and debris removal.
Witnessing the aftermath of the storms, Norington-Joseph said she was surprised — and grateful — there weren’t more injuries. She hopes residents are able to move on.
“The community is devastated,” she said. “It is truly devastated.”
