Elmhurst doctor remembered for commitment to family
Dr. Richard Marshall Cronin, the father of DuPage County Board Chairman Dan Cronin, is being remembered for his commitment to patients, friends and, most of all, family.
Cronin, a physician and surgeon, died Saturday at his home in Elmhurst. He was 89.
"My father was my best buddy, my closest friend and the finest role model for all of us," Dan Cronin said Tuesday.
Born in 1926 in Oak Park, Richard Cronin went to Fenwick High School where he was a standout student and athlete. After graduating with honors from the University of Notre Dame in 1946, he attended Loyola Medical School.
He began his medical practice in Elmhurst in 1960. For more than 55 years, he practiced orthopedic surgery - with a focus on sports-related injuries - at Elmhurst Memorial Hospital, Loyola University Medical Center and Hines Veterans Hospital.
In his obituary, family members described Cronin as "a true physician" who was dedicated to his patients' well-being. He also was "an early advocate of natural healing, resisting surgery and hospital stays except when absolutely necessary," they wrote.
Cronin would volunteer to walk the sidelines at Fenwick, York High School and IC Catholic Prep football games and help students with sprains, breaks and other injuries.
The U.S. Air Force veteran also was actively involved in politics.
"He believed that public service is every citizen's obligation, and state and local politicians routinely sought Dr. Cronin's counsel and support," family members wrote in his obituary.
But Cronin's "greatest joy" was his family.
He married Claire Cusack in 1952, and together they raised nine children.
"He was also a loving husband," Dan Cronin said of his dad. "His relationship with my mother was so wonderful; they had a lifelong love affair."
Family members say Richard Cronin in recent years liked to advise and assist his children in their careers. He "passionately" enjoyed advising Dan Cronin.
"I know he's at peace now, but I will miss him dearly," Dan Cronin said. "You only get one dad."
Dr. Richard Cronin is survived by his wife, Claire, their children and 38 grandchildren.
Visitation is from 3 to 8 p.m. March 9 at Gibbons Funeral Home, 134 South York St., Elmhurst.
The Mass of Resurrection will begin at 11 a.m. March 10 at Immaculate Conception Church, 134 Arthur St., Elmhurst, with internment immediately following at St. Mary's Cemetery.