Former DuPage judge loved conducting wedding ceremonies

A retired DuPage County judge known for his compassion and his ability to marry local couples everywhere from the courthouse to the side of the tollway, has died.

Duane Walter, 88, of Bloomingdale, died Sunday after a nearly yearlong battle with stomach cancer.

"Duane was just a special guy. He was genuinely a good-hearted soul, the kind you wish everyone could be," said Walter's best friend and former Bloomingdale Township Assessor Hank Gianvecchio. "I don't know how he got that way, but he did. He was 88 and he lived every minute of it."

Walter's wife, Beverly, said he was one of the few DuPage judges during the 1980s who enjoyed performing the county's weekly Friday wedding services at the courthouse. She said that enjoyment ultimately led him in 1996 to open the former Old Town Wedding Chapel in Bloomingdale.

"He liked making people happy and he was so good at doing the ceremony," Beverly Walter said.

Illinois Northern District Federal Judge John "Jack" Darrah appeared before Walter many times between 1976 and 1986 as a defense attorney and later befriended him as the two climbed the judicial ranks.

"Duane was the guy you wanted to sit next to at the annual judges Christmas party because he was so witty and fun," Darrah said. "But he was a very fair and compassionate judge and, more importantly, a wonderful man."

Nancy Abraham, assistant supervisor of the DuPage County State's Attorney's Civil Division, first met Walter many years ago when she interned in his courtroom as a court reporter.

"I finished that internship and figured I'd never run into him and I doubt he even knew who I was," Abraham said. "But a friend of mine, who was a singer at a wedding chapel, needed a fill-in for a night and it ended up being at (Walter's) chapel."

From there, their friendship blossomed.

"He was such a wonderful man, such a kind and caring man and friend to me," Abraham said.

Walter is survived by Beverly Walter, his nine children, 16 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

Visitation will be from 1 to 6 p.m. Saturday with a Celebration of Life ceremony at 5 p.m. at Salerno's Rosedale Chapels, 450 W. Lake St. in Roselle. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund or The Navigators.