Marjorie M. Chesney (nee Gerdes) of Woodridge, Illinois, passed away quietly in her home on Friday, September 26th, 2025. Marjorie is survived by her husband of 55 years, Terrence J. Chesney, and her children, son Derek (Danielle) Chesney of Woodridge, IL, daughter Erika (Jeremy) Decker of Powell, WY, niece Dawn (Brian) Biggs of Madison, CT, daughter Nicole (Jeff) Gaspar of Woodridge, IL, daughter Brandy (Danny) Merritt of Pensacola, FL, daughter Darci (Michael) Sanger of Vail, AZ and Astrid Gilbert (Shane Hale) of Yuma, AZ; 18 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren.  She is also survived by her brother Ralph (Mary) Gerdes of Enid, OK and sister Julie (John) Proksel of Blair, NE and a great many nieces and nephews. She is preceded in death by her parents, Irus and Mildred (Payton) Gerdes of Louisville, NE, sister Kathryn (Raymond) Haynie of Springfield, NE, sister Patricia (Carl) Buzzard of Louisville, NE, brother John (Marilyn) Gerdes of Rapid City, SD, and son-in-law Richard Gilbert of North Port, FL.

She was 75 years old, but you wouldn’t know it to look at her. She had the energy and vitality of someone half her age. Her smile and infectious laugh lit up every room she entered, making you feel instantly welcome and infinitely loved. To know her was to become a part of her family and to Marge, everyone was family.

Marge was born on January 29th, 1950, in Nebraska City, Nebraska, to Ike and Midge (Payton) Gerdes. She spent the majority of her childhood in  Louisville, Nebraska with her sisters Kathryn, Patricia, and Julie, and brothers Ralph and John. After her graduation from Louisville High School in 1968, she moved to Omaha to attend airline reservation school. It was there that a representative from the U.S. Navy changed the course of her entire life.  He asked if anyone would be interested in applying to work as a civilian employee at the Navy Annex in Arlington, Virginia…1,200 miles away from everything and everyone she knew. Marge watched her own hand rise as though someone else was lifting it. It was at that moment when she defied every expectation for what her life should be and began to create the life she wanted for herself.  So, after passing her typing qualifications with flying colors, she boarded a Greyhound bus and set off on her first big adventure at just 18 years old.

Shortly after moving to Washington, D.C. she found her next adventure on July 4th, 1969.  She was sitting with two strangers at the Blue Jacket Lounge, pretending to smoke a cigarette, when a young soldier asked her to dance. Just four short months later, her soldier called her at work and asked if she could take the next two days off.  She returned to the phone after speaking with her boss, confirming that she could take the time, to which her soldier replied “Let’s get married.” On November 21st, 1969, Marjorie Marie Gerdes married Terrence Jerome Chesney in a small civil ceremony at the courthouse in La Plata, Maryland.  Once again defying expectations, Marge and Terry celebrated their 55th wedding anniversary in 2024.

The next adventure came when the newlyweds moved to suburban Chicago, Illinois in 1970. They welcomed their first child, Derek Christopher in 1972, followed nearly every two years by five sisters Erika Christine (1974), Nicole Marie (1976), Brandy Elizabeth (1978), Darci Lynn (1980), and finally the baby of the family, Astrid Kristin (1983).  Then, in 1990, they opened their home and their hearts to their 7th child, Marge’s niece, Dawn Lyn, at the age of 16. Marge was nothing short of super mom.  Her kids were her everything.  Homemade birthday cakes for every birthday, amazing Christmas holidays with gifts and food and bowling every year, and so much love.  She was incredibly proud of each of her children and would brag on them all to everyone she knew. She taught them how to drive stick shift and how to be strong. She taught them that they could do anything they set their minds to and that they were capable of anything. She taught them that fear is a four letter word and that driving across the country by yourself is a perfectly fine thing to do. She taught them through her everyday actions how to navigate a world that isn’t always kind or fair, while consistently striving to be kind and fair herself. She was brave and wonderful and brilliant, always thinking of others.  Whether it was a quick text to show you the tiny skeletons at her beloved Aldi because she knows you share her love of Halloween or driving a thousand miles to surprise you at your college graduation, you understood that you were loved.  Quite simply, she was magical.

In addition to raising seven children, Marge also had a full and active social life.  Whether she was going out with coworkers from Sears or Goss Graphics, bowling on a local league, playing basketball in the Senior Olympics, or spending an evening with friends at the casino, there was never a shortage of friends in her life. As her kids grew up and started having kids of their own, she was always there to lend a hand by taking one to dance and picking another up from soccer, making dinner, or flying to London and spending several months taking care of her granddaughter because that is where she was needed. And while she loved her friends, her hobbies, her husband, and her kids, her biggest and most special love was for her grandkids.

Joshua (Olivia), Jacob, Elise, Colin, and Miles Chesney; Wyatt, Kaitlyn, and Colton Decker; Rory Biggs; Preston (Lizzette), Kylie (Will), Trevor, Rylan, and Asa Gaspar; Henry and Ruby Merritt; Miranda and Evora Sanger; and two great-granddaughters, Ashlynn and Esmé Gaspar. Each precious grandchild knew they were Gramma’s favorite, because they all were. She loved them all more than words could ever express.

Marge would be the first to tell you that she wasn’t perfect, and she wasn’t. She was flawed and certainly had her moments of doubt as to whether she was good enough. But she was also real. She was honest about her own flaws – and yours – but in such a way that you felt better about facing them rather than ashamed for having them. It is our most sincere hope that she left this life knowing how much she was loved and appreciated for all that she was and that we’d give just about anything to hear just one more story or to hear her laugh just one more time.

Marjorie…Marge…“Wife, Wife”…Mom…Gramma taught us that regrets are useless. Sure, you make mistakes, choose the wrong path, the wrong partner, the wrong job, but you pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and try again. Forgive others who hurt you if you can, forgive yourself no matter what, because in the end, the mistakes we make and how we learn from them make us who we are right now, and who we are right now is pretty amazing.  While she certainly didn’t believe in regrets, I think if there was just one thing that she could have changed, it would be to have had the chance to say goodbye.

The end came too sudden, without any warning or ability to prepare.  We were convinced she would outlive us all. And the idea that she is gone, that there are no more hugs, no more pep talks or well-timed kicks in the a…rear is unfathomable. That said, it is not out of the question to think that Marjorie Marie Gerdes Chesney, wife of nearly 56 years, mother of 7, grandmother of 20, best friend, bowler extraordinaire, unofficial Aldi ambassador, and lover of slot machines, walked up to Saint Peter at the Pearly Gates and let him have it for pulling her too soon. She wasn’t done yet. She had so many more adventures to find.  We can only hope there is a bowling alley/casino on a beach in heaven and that when we get there some day, the very first thing we hear is her laugh.

So, we invite you all to go out into the world today and find an adventure in Marge’s honor. Find joy. Find someone to help or hug or heal. By doing so, you will keep her here with us for just a little longer…maybe even long enough to say goodbye.

Visitation services will be held on Friday, October 3, 2025, from 3:00pm to 7:00pm at Cappetta’s West Suburban Funeral Home, 4920 Main St., Downers Grove, IL.  Light refreshments, food, and drinks will be provided from 3:30 – 6:30pm. Chapel services and eulogies will commence at 6:00pm. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation in Marge’s honor to the National Association for Down Syndrome https://www.nads.org . For additional information please call 630-852-8000 or visit our website westsuburbanfh.com