Marilyn Maher Obituary, Death – After a brief battle with illness, on January 2, 2023, in Henderson, Nevada, Marilyn Virginia Maher, formerly Olsen, died away peacefully surrounded by her family. Her age was 71. The holidays were celebrated with her family in Nevada, where she and her husband, Robert P. Maher, Sr., had planned to retire when their children had left the nest. The holiday tradition known as “Maher Christmas” was something that the family celebrated together every year and looked forward to with great anticipation. The event that took place this year was particularly noteworthy since it was the first time in a number of years that everyone could get together from different parts of the country.
Throughout her life, Marilyn held many positions, the most notable of which were Chief Financial Officer at ACD Distribution in Middleton, Wisconsin, where she worked most recently, and Executive Director of the YWCA in Freeport, Illinois, where she was recognized for running critical women’s programming. She worked with her son, Robert P. Maher, Jr., each and every day. Her guiding presence and wisdom will be dearly missed. Despite the fact that she was committed to her work, she managed to find time to sail on a variety of oceans and travel with her husband to a large number of nations located on each of the seven continents. The most recent vacation was a cruise across Australia, but other excursions included a fly around the world, Antarctica, the Galapagos Islands with relatives, and a visit to Galapagos.
Northlake, Illinois is the place where Marilyn spent her entire childhood. After Marilyn and Robert got married in 1977, they took their new family to Winona Lake, Indiana, to stay there for a whole year. After relocating to Freeport, Illinois, the family remained there for the whole of their children’s high school careers. After settling down in the heart of Chicago, the pair has spent the following twenty years dividing their time between Oak Brook, Illinois, and Middleton, Wisconsin.
Marilyn was the devoted wife of Robert, Sr. for 45 years; the loving mother of Jennifer (Bob) Linton of Chicago and Robert (Courtney) Maher, Jr. of Middleton; the devoted step-mother of Kimberly Fields of Dallas, Texas, and Jennie Caris of La Selva Beach, California; the proud grandmother of Abby and Emma Hornberger, Aidyn, Hadley, Lennon and Beckett Maher, A.J. Field Marilyn was a caring and devoted friend to a great number of people, most notably Kathy (Ed) Schultz, who was to her in the role that a sister would play.
On Saturday, January 14, 2023, from 3:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., family and friends will be received at the Conboy-Westchester Funeral Home, located at 10501 W. Cermack Rd., in Westchester, for a memorial visitation. Eulogies and shared remembrances will begin at 7:00 p.m., and will be followed by a brief prayer service. Interment private. In lieu of sending flowers, a donation can be given in Marilyn’s name to the charitable organization of your choosing.