Gail Saraniecki Sophie O’Malley OBITUARY

Gail Saraniecki Sophie O’Malley OBITUARY

Gail Sophie O’Malley, 88, passed away peacefully at home in Ko Olina, Hawaii, on June 13, 2026. She was born Nov. 22, 1937, in Chicago, Illinois, to the late Walter and Alvera (Janiszewska) Saraniecki. She graduated from DePaul University where she met her husband, Patrick, during her study abroad program in Vienna, Austria. They married in 1960 and raised a family of six children on Chicago’s northwest side.

Gail had a passion for travel; she loved people and learning about new cultures. With some money from her father, she purchased a small travel agency in Skokie, IL in the early 1980s. For the next 30 years, Gail sent clients all over the world, traveled the world herself – with her husband, family, friends and led many travel groups. She also visited her five children who were spread out across the country, always pitching in to help with work around the house.

She had a great sense of humor, always enjoyed a good joke, went to mass regularly, sang in the choir, was an avid Cubs fan, was proud of her Polish heritage, always called and sang happy birthday to ALL those close to her, (no matter how old you were), wore the current styles, and loved to entertain at home. She will be dearly missed by family and friends all over the world.

She is preceded in death by her husband, Patrick, and daughter, Laura. She is survived by her children, Patrick M. (Susan) O’Malley, Maria Normandy, Jeannine Strampel, Bridget (John) Burke, and Michael (Cara) O’Malley; grandchildren, Aimee (Stephen Roy) O’Malley, Tommy (Didi) O’Malley, Jill Sawatski, Paul (Jessica) Sawatski, Darrel (Eryn) Normandy, Alyse (Duran) Dominguez, Tyler (Bree) Strampel, Ellyn Strampel, Cormac Burke, John (Molly) O’Malley and Audrey O’Malley; great-grandchildren, Sawyer and Sterling Sawatski, Cecil and Lionel Roy, Hudson Normandy, Esme and Townes Dominguez, and Talon and Lakely Strampel. She is survived by her brother Walter (Claudia) Saraniecki.

A Funeral Mass will be held at Immaculate Conception church on July 25 at 11:00 a.m., followed by a celebration of life. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to St. Rita’s Building Fund in Nanakuli, Hawaii: https://stritananakuli.weshareonline.org/ws/opportunities/BuildingFund