Obituary: Dawn Fitzpatrick

Dawn Fitzpatrick, (Martin), died Aug. 20th, 2012 in Fort Myers Florida.

She was born June 22, 1954 in Charles City, Iowa and moved to Naperville a short two years later.

Her parents William (Bill) and Elva Martin (Hildebrand) were relieved to finally have a beautiful little girl following her three rambunctious brothers, Greg, Dave and Bob. Little did they know that Dawn was not destined to be the quiet little princess they envisioned, but rather more likely to be the culprit who started the fisticuffs in the back seat of the car.

A ferocious animal advocate combined with a competitive nature led Dawn into raising huskie/hound dog types while running the Kodiak Pet Lodge in Oswego. The next step was the racing of sled dogs, starting in the Midwest and eventually moving to Alaska. Her first race in Anchorage left locals muttering “who was that woman?,” as she handily finished first. By the second race they knew what the rest of us already understood, she’s trouble. With a big grin and her beloved husband Mike by her side, she reveled in every challenge that came her way.

In addition to her racing pursuits, Dawn never found a pool hall she didn’t love. Cue in one hand and an “adult” beverage in the other; she relished the challenge of pitting her skills against her last game.

In addition to the Pet Lodge, Dawn co-owned and managed the Pine Lodge Motel in Savanna, Ill.

She was a class of 1972 graduate of Naperville Central High School.

As a strong woman, Dawn was always ready to give another woman a hand up, hand out or kick in the butt depending on what was needed. She encouraged all of us to step up our game and be better than what we thought we could ever be. In the hospital, while waging war against the fallopian tube cancer that eventually took her life, she embraced the staff who supposedly there to help her and ultimately found themselves sitting on her bed sharing their life stories with her. She was always ready to defend others who could not defend themselves.

Dawn is survived by the long suffering love of her life and occasional bane of her existence, Mike Fitzpatrick, who is universally viewed by the rest of us as a saint.

She was preceded in death by her mother Elva, and is survived by her loving father Bill, and the blessed gift of mother number two, Fran (Osbron) who Dawn adored and admired. Those three big brothers, Greg in Asheville NC, Dave (Rae) in Naperville IL and Bob (Jan) in Knoxville TN remain shocked at the loss of their little sister; Dawns amazing children: Jamie Cook (Fitzpatrick), Loganville GA, Jason Fitzpatrick, Montgomery IL, Michelle Schuster (Fitzpatrick), Oswego IL, and Casey Fitzpatrick, Oswego IL, know what good fortune they had in being the recipients of her unconditional love.

She leaves nine beloved grandchildren: Matthew Martens, Zack Fitzpatrick, Danielle Guddendorf, Megan Cook, Jake Fitzpatrick, Dylon Cook, Jessica Fitzpatrick, William Fitzpatrick and Erin Fitzpatrick.

There is a long list of the friends who loved her including, among others, Melissa, Andi, Judy and her favorite cat Sid.

To sum her up it could be said that Dawn followed dreams not rules and when asked to quiet down she spoke even louder.

Dawn was adamant that her “party” include hugs, laughter, pool tables and the people she loved with such great gusto.

A celebration of the life of Dawn Fitzpatrick will be held from 2 to 6 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 7, at Fox and Hound Bar & Grill, 4320 E New York Ave, Aurora. Readings from family and friends will be at 4:30 p.m.

Contributions in her memory may be made to: Hope House Hospice, Cape Coral Florida at www.hopehospice.org; Bremwood Lutheran Children’s Home at www.isiowa.org/index.php/about-us/; or the National Organization for Women at www.now.org.