Eileen Mary O’Keefe was born June 19, 1955, in Syracuse, New York, the oldest daughter and second oldest child of Gerard and Joan (Randall) O’Keefe. She grew up in Deerfield, Northbrook and Cincinnati. After graduating from Miami University (Ohio) in 1977, Eileen moved to Washington, DC, where she worked in education, public relations and catering, and at the National Institute for Mental Health. She relocated to Lake Forest in 1994 and was employed by the American Hospital Association for more than 20 years. But her biggest joys and accomplishments would lie outside her work. Her interests and talents were considerable and diverse. She was an accomplished painter, a gourmet chef, an avid gardener, a nature lover and a world traveler, having visited sites in a dozen countries over four continents from Tuscany to Turkey, usually in the company of longtime friends Kristin Welsh and Denzel McGuire. She was generous, independent and plainspoken, a loyal and faithful friend and the consummate hostess. She battled the cancer that claimed her with fortitude and class and found great sources of strength in her faith and family. In October of 1960 there were five O’Keefe children, the oldest of whom was six. As a result, Eileen assumed the role of assistant mother, and didn’t relinquish that position for the rest of her life. She never married or had children of her own, but the relationships that “Aunt Ween” forged with her fifteen nieces and nephews were unique, strong, and transcendent.

She was preceded in death by her parents. She is survived by her siblings, Gerry (Margret), David (Frances), Margaret (Robert) Hogan, Mary (William) Lederer and Ann Lauritson, her beloved nephews and nieces Katherine O’Keefe, Sara O’Keefe (Jack Hattendorf), Michael (Ali), John (Anne), Ellen and Margaret O’Keefe, Bobby (Hilary), Colleen and Grace Hogan, William, Kate and Joan Lederer and Madeline (Ricardo Cruz), Charlie and Lily Lauritson, and great niece Maisie Ann Cruz. Eileen will live on in the hearts and minds of everybody who knew her, whose lives were changed for having known her and whose worlds are a little bit smaller for having lost her.

Visitation Friday, November 22, 2024, 10:30 a.m. until the time of the Funeral Mass 11:30 a.m. at the Church of Saint Mary, 175 E. Illinois Road, Lake Forest, IL 60045. To virtually attend the Funeral Mass, scroll down this page to access the link to the webcast.

Interment private at Sacred Heart Cemetery, Northbrook, IL

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to:

 American Cancer Society

150 S. Wacker Drive, #2100

Chicago, IL 60606

Info: donnellanfuneral.com or 847-675-1990