Second City comedian Judy Fabjance of Mount Prospect dies of cancer

Suburban comedian Judy Fabjance, who continued trying to make people laugh even after her life was threatened by cancer, died Saturday after an eight-year fight with the disease.

Fabjance, a 41-year-old Mount Prospect native, was known throughout Chicago's comedy community as a prized improvisation instructor at The Second City Training Center.

She also was a co-founder and the longest-serving ensemble member of the pioneering Chicago LGBTQ sketch comedy troupe GayCo, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year.

"Every single person at Second City whose life has been touched by Judy Fabjance, from Level A student to lauded alum, will tell you that she is an absolute paragon of a human being with the heart of a lion beating beneath that sweet veneer," said Andrew Alexander, Kelly Leonard and Kerry Sheehan of The Second City in a joint statement. "She has been a tower of strength and inspiration to all us at Second City since the day she came into our lives."

Fabjance started her comedy career as a 16-year-old Prospect High School student working part-time as a host at the former northwest location of The Second City in Rolling Meadows.

At Fabjance's 1992 graduation party, Second City cast members and future comedy stars like Tina Fey, Stephen Colbert, Amy Sedaris and Nia Vardalos (from "My Big Fat Greek Wedding") all showed up. Many later offered assistance in fundraising efforts for Fabjance's cancer treatments and reconstructive surgeries.

"They've always been there for me," Fabjance said of her Second City colleagues in a 2011 Daily Herald interview.

First diagnosed with Stage 2 breast cancer at age 34, Fabjance scheduled her initial surgeries around holidays so they wouldn't interfere with her Second City teaching schedule.

While in remission in 2011, Fabjance found humor out of her cancer ordeal by creating and starring in the one-woman GayCo comedy show "Are You There, Judy? It's Me, Cancer."

"Judy was someone who always took what was going on her life and she always took it to the stage," said GayCo ensemble member Clay Goodpasture. "I think it was almost therapeutic for her. It helped her get through it and it helped us understand it."

Fabjance's cancer returned later that year, spreading to her lungs and bones. In 2013, Fabjance learned that the cancer had spread to her brain.

Even so, she created a touring follow-up show called "Tales of a Stage 4 Cancer" in 2014. It co-starred and was cowritten by Fabjance's wife and fellow GayCo performer, Kelly Beeman, finding humor in topics ranging from restrictive diets to the motives of the "Big Pink" industry.

"We've been overwhelmed by the many letters and emails from hundreds of former students and people she's worked with, especially at The Second City," said Fabjance's mother, Stephanie. "We always knew how great she was and these responses have only confirmed that."

Fabjance is survived by Kelly, her daughter Daphne, and siblings Tom, Gary and Cathi along with her parents, registered nurse Stephanie and professional magician John Fabjance.

A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday at The Second City, 1608 N. Wells St., Chicago.

Memorial donations may be made by searching her name on gofundme.com for a page set up to help with existing medical bills and to create a scholarship for Daphne, or to the nonprofit research organization METAvivor for those living with stage 4 metastatic breast cancer.