Bernadette Mary Palicka, 86, of Lisle, Illinois, passed away peacefully on October 14, 2022, at the Brookdale Skilled Nursing in Lisle. She was born on June 7, 1936, in Chicago, Illinois.

Bernadette was blessed with five beautiful children: Howard J. Palicka, Donna M. Palicka (John Gleichman), Richard S. Palicka (Linda Williams), Daniel J. Palicka (Gigi Kupsche), and Dr. Gary A. Palicka; six grandchildren:  Elizabeth "Lizzie" Palicka-Sarabia, Amy (Micheal) Ehm, Margaret Palicka, Phillip Palicka (Megan Small), Anna Palicka, and Ona Gleichman; two great-grandchildren: Joseph James "JJ" Sarabia and Dalton Ehm.

She is survived by her beloved children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, brother, Thomas (Bernadette) Kawka; and numerous nieces, nephews, cousins, and extended family members. Bernadette was preceded in death by her parents, Constantine and Harriet (Sokolowski) Kawka; her beloved son, Howard James Palicka; her sisters Barbara (Alan) Locke and Joan (Mel) Hodges, her brother Jerome (Ruby) Kawka; and her beloved granddaughter, Margaret Palicka.

Bernie grew up in a Czech and Polish neighborhood of Chicago and graduated from Nazareth Academy.  Despite her childhood battle with Polio, she loved to dance and polka.

Over the years, Bernadette worked various clerical jobs at Oakbrook Bank and Trust, Benedictine University in Lisle, IL, and Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, IL, all the while she was raising five rambunctious kids, and lovingly caring for her eldest son, Howard, who valiantly lost his battle with congenital Kidney Disease, just shy of his 19 ^th birthday. He was the first pediatric kidney transplant at Rush Presbyterian Hospital in Chicago, receiving his kidney from his father Richard J Palicka.

Bernadette, to put it simply, was an angel. She was a voracious reader, enjoyed traditional lace tatting, a rousing game of pinochle, and all forms of word games. Above all, she cherished spending time with her family at her beloved Kawka-Palicka family cottage on Bass Lake, near Knox, Indiana. Her memory and the cottage are inseparable, and we are forever indebted to her for that family legacy . . . and countless summers filled with fond memories. Thank you, Bernadette, for being such a great mother! You will be loved forever and sorely missed—rest in peace.

In lieu of flowers those who desire may make a memorial donation to the American Kidney Fund , in the memory of Bernadette and Howard.

A visitation will be held on Thursday, October 20, 2022 from 4:00 to 8:00 p.m. at Hultgren Funeral Home, Wheaton, where a funeral service will be held on Friday, October 21, 2022 at 11:00 a.m. A livestream of the funeral service will be available here https://youtu.be/3fEe4sKJI9w

Interment will follow at Queen of Heaven Cemetery in Hillside, Illinois.