Dr. James O'Donnell, Sr

Dr. James “Jim” O’Donnell of Woodstock, Illinois, went to be with the Lord on Saturday, April 13, 2013, at the age of 73. He was born in Monroe, Wisconsin, on May 29, 1939. He is survived by his wife of 51 years, Linda Peters O'Donnell of Woodstock, Illinois; daughter, Deborah O'Donnell Willyard of Marietta, GA; son, James M. O'Donnell, Jr. of Kimberly, WI; granddaughters, Heather and Jennifer Willyard of Marietta, GA; and grandson, Andrew O'Donnell of Oshkosh, WI; Great-Granddaughter, Malia Lynn Willyard of Marietta, GA; sister, Judith O'Donnell Schulze of Florence, SC; a brother, Jon O'Donnell of Decatur, GA; and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, Francis and Irene O'Donnell.

Jim was a graduate of the 1957 class at Joliet Township High School in Joliet, Illinois. He was an award winning concert and marching band member who proficiently played both clarinet and saxophone. Jim started singing very young and became a boy soprano. Jim was an avid tennis player in junior and senior high, and received a tennis scholarship to college. He was ranked number 8th in the Midwest for boys’ tennis. His love of music and tennis followed him all of his life. He was so proud of the fact that both his grandchildren shared his love of music, with Andrew playing the Oboe and marching Saxophone in his high school marching band, and Heather achieving her Masters Degree in Flute Performance.

He graduated from dental school at Loyola University in Chicago in 1964, and attained the rank of Lieutenant Commander in the U.S. Navy for 4 years, and with the Reserves for 6 years as a dentist, at Moffett Field in Mountain View, California. He practiced Dentistry for 40+ years. Jim loved California and did spend the majority of his life living there, but always missed Illinois and Wisconsin and longed for his old life in the Midwest. In the 1990’s, he and Linda bought a lake home in Waupaca, Wisconsin, and that home on the Chain of Lakes ended up being a gathering place for family and friends. There were many good memories made while boating on the lake. He continued to practice dentistry as an associate in Wisconsin, and was recently retired.

Jim usually started every conversation with a joke or two, and as one friend would put it, “you never knew where Jim was gonna show up.” He had a great love of family, friends, traveling, good food, sports, a good debate about current events and politics, and life in general. His presence was always bigger than life, and he will be missed.

The family will receive friends from 10 to 11 am at Davenport Family Funeral Home, 419 E. Terra Cotta Ave. (Route 176), Crystal Lake, on Saturday, April 20, 2013. Funeral services will be there at the Funeral Home right after visitation at 11:00 am. Inurnment will be private.