Geraldine Lee Poe

Geraldine (Gerrie) L. Poe, beloved mother and grandmother, has died at age 74 after a long and courageous struggle with advanced lung cancer. Her wish to remain at home during her illness was honored, and Gerrie passed peacefully into God’s open arms on Thursday, January 14th, 2021, with her daughter Susie by her side. Both women were blessed with two wonderful hospice teams, who graciously guided her loving care both in Crystal Lake, Il, and Sycamore, Il.

Gerrie is preceded in death by her parents, Anton E. Vesneske of Palatine, Il and Caroline R. Rickel (nee Raminger) of Griffith, Indiana, and her ex-husband Lawrence W. Poe, of Alabama. She is survived by her siblings, James (Jimmy) Vesneske of Lake Villa; Barbara Eck of Monterey, Ca; Richard Vesneske of Island Lake, Il: and Ronald Vesneske. She is survived by her four loving children, Scott Roof of Gold Canyon, Arizona; Suzanne Jenke (Roof) of Sycamore, Il; Michael Roof of Crystal Lake, Il; and Ryan Poe, of Ingleside, Il.  She was dearly loved by her son-in-law Jeffery Jenke of Sycamore, Il; daughter-in-law Pamela Roof (Oerkfitz) of Crystal Lake, Il, and Michelle Kutchik (McNeil) of Elgin, Il.  She will be missed by her grandchildren, Colin Roof and fiancé Patricia Ventouris of Oswego, Il; Courtney Roof of Hoffman Estates, Il; Makenna Roof of Crystal Lake, Il; and Mia Jenke of Sycamore, Il. 

Gerrie was born in Palatine, Il and attended Fremd Junior High and graduated from Palatine High School. She always excelled in her studies, and won a full scholarship to pursue a teaching degree at Southern Illinois University. Fate had other ideas, and so in 1966 she moved to Lake in the Hills, Il to start a family with her first husband, Frank G. Roof, currently of Las Vegas, NV. As an excellent cook and baker, she loved making delicious dinners, homemade birthday cakes and legendary Christmas cookies. She learned to sew at a young age, and always made her children’s Halloween costumes by hand. Gerrie enjoyed all the holidays, and especially loved making Easter baskets for the grandkids and decorating her beautiful home for the Christmas season. She was an avid bird-watcher that always had many feathered friends at the feeders, and collected ceramics of her favorites.  Together with her second husband Larry, they moved to Crystal Lake, welcoming their son Ryan in 1980. Along with good friends, Larry and Gerrie co-owned Labemi’s Tavern, a Crystal Lake institution which still stands today, and was the source of many good memories of Chicago Bears Sundays and chili cook-offs. She also worked in the offices at Precision Twist, and more recently The Print Shop, both near the Crystal Lake home she had lived in since 1978.

Gerrie will always be remembered for her wry sense of humor, and her love of beach vacations, collecting seashells, and listening to great 50’s-60’s music. She was a very special lady who we all admired as a fiercely strong and independent woman to the very end. Mom, we’ll always love you, miss you, and will never forget you! Rest easy now, and be at peace.

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