Obituary of Frank Nickels

Frank was born May 27, 1928 in Chicago at St. Elizabeth's Hospital. His first schooling began at St. Genevieve Catholic School. He attended DePaul Academy and Quigley Prep Seminary before heading to St. Mary of the Lake Seminary in Mundelein, IL where he was ordained as a priest on May 5, 1954. He then traveled to Innsbruck, Austria where he lived with a host family and attended classes at the Seminary there. After this excursion, he came back to Illinois and began teaching Latin, German, and Geometry at his Alma Mater, Quigley Prep Seminary. He received his Master Degree in Education and Counseling from Loyola University. Frank left the priesthood and moved to Lake County where he began working as a Career Counselor for the College of Lake County in Grayslake for nearly 30 years, officially retired in 1998, and worked the next 10 years part-time. Prior to retiring, he was the president of the Annuittance Association and worked endlessly to ensure all the members were represented and properly taken care of. He eventually settled to Gurnee and was an active member of St. Patrick's Catholic Church of Wadsworth serving as Lector and Eucharist Minister. He also was in charge of the Donut Sunday fundraisers and served the Church in numerous capacities as well. One of his great achievements with the Church was in helping create the Shamrock Club and presiding as President for 21 years. He was a 3rd Degree Knight of Knights of Columbus member serving as Recording Secretary and Blood Drive Coordinator. He also volunteered with Catholic Charities and the Addolorata Villa. At the Villa, where his parents lived, he volunteered to run games for the seniors even after his parents' passing. His last and ultimate recognition from St. Patrick's Church came in 2010 as the recipient of the Christi Fidelis Award for his tireless dedication to the Church and its parishioners. His hobbies were going to the Casino, volunteering, traveling, and spending time with his family and friends. He loved life. Survivors include his wife Cheryl; children Deborah (Lee) Garnett of Bailey, CO, Kevin Michael Nickels of San Francisco, CA; step-children James Hilbert of Gurnee, IL, and Chris (Becca) Hilbert of Round Lake, IL; and six grandchildren Dirk, Anna, Sera, Luke, Ruby, and Aidan. He was preceded in death by his parents Francis Sr. and Florence Nickels. Visitation will be Friday, February 17, 2012, from 4:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. at St. Patrick's Church, 15000 W Wadsworth Road, Wadsworth, IL. Mass of Christian burial will be Saturday, February 18, at 9:30 a.m. at St. Patrick's with visitation beginning at 8:30 a.m. Interment will follow at Ascension Cemetery, Libertyville. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations to either Juvenile Diabetes of Chicago or American Kidney Foundation have been suggested.