Dennis LoBue died Feb. 1 at the age of 70. He was born in Chicago Heights, Ill., Aug. 31, 1941.
He was a lunchtime waiter at Lino's and Bentley's Wine Bar; co-founder of the Fairy Gardeners Guild; a prize-winning gardener; a onetime female impersonator named Dee LoBue; and all-around charming guy.
While sharing his garden for a Rogers Park Historical Society Garden walk, he and Thomas Kach envisioned a garden walk hosted by gays and lesbians. The idea grew into the Fairy Gardeners Guild, a group of gardeners from all areas of Chicagoland that meets six times a year for information exchange and to enjoy a shared meal.
LoBue was also a member of the Rogers Park Garden Group. In 2010 he won first place for the northern portion of the city in the mayor's annual garden competition. He was proud to present Mayor Daley a bottle of honey from his bees when he received the award.
During his time at Lino's he waited on then-President and First Lady Clinton, Vice President Gore, U.S. Sen. Carol Moseley Braun and Gov. Jim Edgar. He was known to deny his customers menus and to tell them what they would enjoy for lunch. He relished in helping his customers enjoy a great lunch, and many patrons remained friends with him after his retirement.
He always enjoyed preparing a meal and sharing it with others. He and his partner of 34 years, Darwin Corrin, hosted numerous parties in their home and garden.
When asked what he wanted people to remember about LoBue, Corrin told Windy City Times, "First, he was an amazingly charming man. He made friends with everybody he met, just through his sense of humor—even the nurses at the hospitals where he spent the last four weeks. He did the same thing at Lino's.
"The other thing is that he was a marvelous gardener. He had more energy than anyone I've ever known."
LoBue grew up in Harvey, Ill., where he went to Thornton Township High School, graduating in 1959. He subsequently went into the Air Force, but was medically discharged after three months, according to a 1999 interview with Outlines ( which purchased Windy City Times in 2000 ) . As for being Dee LoBue, he said, "I decided that I liked it so much that I did it for a living. From 1959, when I got out of the service and got back to Chicago, until 1966, that's all I did to make a living. I was as a female impersonator. It was great."
LoBue is survived by Corrin; mother Adeline; brothers Russell and Mark ( Nancy ) ; sister Linda Zyback, who preceded him in death; nephews David, Tom Markanich ( Linda ) and Tony Markanich ( Wilma ) ; and nieces Gina Hernandez ( Tim ) , Tracy Vanderah ( Kurt ) and Jaclin Eiermann.
A celebration of LoBue's life is planned for Saturday, Feb. 18, at 2:30 p.m. at Unity of Chicago Church, 1925 W. Thome Ave. Dinner will follow.
—Andrew Davis
