Irene J. Lozano

Irene Lozano – daughter, sister, aunt, cousin, and friend – died February 17 at the age of 96. Born on the Near North Side of Chicago on Dec. 15, 1928, to Mario and Lucy Lozano, she was the youngest of five children. She was very proud of her siblings who precede her in death; Adrian, an architect; Ed, an electrical engineer; and Sophie Vital and Mary Santellano, creative homemakers and mothers to more than a dozen of Irene’s nieces and nephews. Irene was fiercely dedicated to her family. Her siblings and many cousins like Carmen, who lived close by, were her best friends. Going to the beach and dancing were among her favorite past times.

Irene lived in the Old Town neighborhood for most of her life and was an active member of St. Michael’s parish. Like her siblings, she was artistically inclined. Upon graduation from Waller High School, though working full time and devoting herself to the care of her parents, her passion for art flourished. She documented family life with her camera and would spend her time after work painting, often working on commissioned pieces for faculty and staff from Northwestern University Dental School where she worked until she retired in 1991. Shortly thereafter, she moved to the southwest side of Chicago where she continued to paint, garden, photograph and expand into handicrafts.

Irene is survived by 16 nieces and nephews, dozens of great and grandnieces and nephews and cousins. The family would like to acknowledge the care given to Irene in the last years of her life by Rosary Hill Home in Justice, Il. Donations in her memory can be made to Rosary Hill (sisterop.com) or the Foundation Fighting Blindness (fightingblindness.org).