PASSAGES John F. Vorrasi
John F. Vorrasi, of Chicago and Rochester, NY; died February 23, 2015, after a courageous battle with leukemia.
Vorrasi co-founded the Wiliam Ferrris Chorale of Chicago and served as the ensemble's Artistic Director. John enjoyed a long and respected career as a concert soloist, cantor and liturgical music specialist, holding positions at Chicago's Holy Name Cathedral, Congregation Solel in Highland Park, KAM Isaiah Israel, and Our Lady of Mt Carmel Church.
He is also known for his work as a librettist, essayist and program annotator. A widely respected tenor, Vorrasi has been featured at the Aldeburgh Festival and the Spoleto Festival: USA and his recitals have been broadcast by the BBC and Radio Vaticana. John has appeared on numerous occasions with the Chicago Opera Theater, Rochester Chamber Orchestra, the Chicago String Ensemble and the Virginia Philharmonic.
For those of us who knew John, he was all joy, passion, loyalty and love. He is survived by sisters Annemarie House, Rita DeLucia ( James ) brother Ferdinand ( Darlene ) and cousin Linda Iacelli of Rochester.
A memorial Mass was held Feb. 26, at Mt. Carmel Church.
In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to Northwestern University, Attn: Rohan Barrett, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, 420 E. Superior St., 9th floor, Chicago, IL 60611 ( memo line: "In memory of John Vorrasi" ).
Arrangements by Cremation Society of Illinois, 773-281-5058 or www.cremation-society.com
Patner memorial set for March 18
The memorial service for Andrew Patner has been rescheduled for Wed., March 18, 7-9 p.m., in Orchestra Hall, 220 S. Michigan Ave.
There will be a reception following the service.
Patner, a longtime Chicago critic in print, radio and television, passed away Jan. 3. He was 55.
Patner was active within both in Chicago's fine-arts world, and LGBT and Jewish communities, among others. He was a commentator on WFMT radio, and his criticism appeared in Chicago Sun-Times, and wrote for Chicago Magazine, among numerous other publications, as well. He was inducted into the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame in 2013.
PASSAGES Louis Beckham Snider Jr.
Louis Beckham Snider Jr. passed away Feb. 19 in Chicago's at Brightview Care Center. He was 80.
Snider was born in Taylorsville, Kentucky, on Sept. 6, 1934—the eldest child of Margaret Childress-Snider and Louis Snider Sr. ( deceased ). A life-long Baptist, he most recently attended North Shore Baptist Church.
Snider said he came out to himself at age 41. He also came out as openly gay with the Chicago Board of Education in 1979 becoming, as he put it, among the first openly gay teachers in Chicago. He was an artist by training and profession, earning both bachelor and master degrees from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. He was an art teacher at several Chicago Public Schools and retired from John Marshall Harlan High School ( now Harlan Community Academy ) after 25 years of service in 1995.
He was a founding and active member of ACT UP Chicago, which started in the living room of his Sheridan Park condo in 1988. ACT UP was a direct-action group founded to advocate for greater HIV/AIDS prevention and care funding.
In addition, Snider was an avid movie lover and a longtime patron of WFMT Classical Radio Chicago.
He is survived by brother Ermit, sister-in-law Jonni Lynn ( Chicago ), sister Marylyn ( deceased ), cousin Donna-Kay ( Taylorsville, KY ) and a host of dear friends.
The memorial service will take place at North Shore Baptist Church, 5244 N. Lakewood Ave., on Saturday, March 28, at 4 p.m. Donations may be made to OneHopeUnited.org ., formerly Central Baptist Children's Home.
