Dave Mesich

Husband, father, grandfather, brother, godfather, uncle, Catholic, Croatian, American citizen, friend, neighbor, engaging co-worker, the many facets of who Dave was. Generous, loving, caring, giving - always putting the needs of others ahead of himself without any ill mention or complaint. Born in Croatia, Dave and his parents had to flee their county in the wake of World War II. While Dave’s father served in the Resistance, Dave’s mother took her then three year old son and fled with a small group over the Alps, on foot, to the safety of Austria. There the family was reunited and lived in war camps until sponsored to come to this country. Dave was fourteen and spoke no English when he came to the US. By watching TV Westerns, he taught himself to speak our language, and instilled in all his children the importance of proper English. By the time Dave was working, people would ask him how to spell words and what was the proper grammatical tense that was needed! We always joked he spoke better English than most Americans. Dave was too young to remember his homeland, but he adopted and loved America, always saying it had its faults, but was still the best place to live. He so enjoyed classical music, and the opera, chess, reading, crossword puzzles; extremely knowledgeable in history, geography, world events. (a true Renaissance man.) Dave was an avid skier up into his 70’s. He also enjoyed playing soccer as a young boy and as a young man on traveling leagues, then refereeing soccer for the Park District for many years. All four sons played soccer and shared his love of the game. Dave was a long time season ticket holder for Notre Dame and enjoyed cheering them on season after season. Initially the family lived in Gary, Indiana, near St. Joseph’s parish, then moved to Chicago. Dave went to Wells High School and attended Loyola University for a short period of time. He worked at IGT, then US Steel’s downtown Chicago office. When the company closed its office there, Dave moved on to American National Bank, which eventually evolved into Chase Bank. He helped set up the phones and PC’s at new branches, and enjoyed the interaction of the people he was dealing with. When the bank moved its facility to Ohio, Dave took early retirement. He became active then, in helping family, friends and the church in any way that he could, and especially loved time spent with all his grandchildren. Family always came first. Dave loved people and lived life with such great passion. What a joy it was to know Dave. Wife: Mary Ann Sons: Davorin Jr. (Sandy), Daniel (Jenelle), Dennis (Lauren), Jonathan (Laura) Daughter: Annemarie Honorary: Jackie De Pasquale Grandchildren: Hunter, Aliyah and Jaxson Honorary: Brooke, Haley, Wesley and Isabella Austin, Taylor, Tyler Goddaughter: Annalise Lewis Brothers: Stanley and Thomas Many loving relatives and friends Preceded in death by parents Tomislav and Emilia (nee Frank) Mesich.

Dave Mesich

May 3, 2015