Thaddeus (Ted) John Soltys, Sr., 95, long-time resident of Elmhurst, Illinois, passed away peacefully on January 14, 2025, surrounded by his loving family, in Dunedin, Florida. He was predeceased by his parents, John and Mary, and his 5 sisters: Bernice Szydlowski, Stephanie Jarosz, Jean Thomas, Helen Norris, and Sophie Delster.
Ted was born in Chicago, Illinois on September 16, 1929 to Polish parents John and Mary Soltys (nee Staniszewski). He was the couple’s only son. Ted attended grammar school and served as an altar boy at St. Hyacinth Parish and, as he entered the world at the onset of the Great Depression, he fondly recalled stories of walking alone as a young boy through darkened alleys before sunrise to serve the 5 a.m. Mass, wherein a kind elderly lady befriended him and, thereafter, served him a warm breakfast every day en route back home from the church in Chicago’s Avondale neighborhood. St. Hyacinth, home to numerous Polish immigrants, was designated a minor basilica by Pope John Paul II in 2003 and, later the same year, designated a basilica of the Archdiocese of Chicago.
Ted wove a colorful tapestry of everyone he met along life’s path, including a racing pigeon enthusiast who lived next door to him as a child. This childhood neighbor’s pastime, thanks to his close proximity, fostered in Ted a love of racing pigeons at an early age, as the former gifted Ted with a pigeon of his very own to care for.
Unlike the pigeons one might feed from a park bench, racing pigeons enjoy both a noble heritage and historic pedigree, as they were enlisted to deliver life-saving messenger service in World Wars I and II. The avian sport, deeply revered in Poland and many other countries throughout the world, made its way to the United States circa 1875. Pigeon racing involves releasing meticulously trained homing pigeons a measured distance while clocking the travel time. Intricate clocks were employed to calibrate race time and compare the results to other racers. Ted cultivated a passion for the hobby/sport and, during his active pigeon racing years, he managed to care for, breed and train up to 200 of these competitive flyers at a time. He had a knack for selecting race-winning homing pigeons and procured a long line of winning birds over the many years during which he honed his craft.
Ted attended Carl Schurz High School and Wright Junior College, before proudly serving his country in the United States Air Force during the Korean War, which found him stationed at Manston Air Force Base. On
June 6, 1958, Ted met Janet Miller, his future wife of 65 1/2 years, at a dance at the Holiday Ballroom in Chicago. He asked Jan if she wanted to dance the Cha-Cha and the two were married a year later on June 6, 1959. Ever the “romantic”, Ted proposed to Jan at a drive-in movie screening of Creature From the Black Lagoon, a cinematic choice that, years later, generated perplexed questions from his kids who inquired, “Of all choices…why, dad, did you pick THAT movie?!” Little did Ted and Jan know that their extended family and grandchildren would gather 50 years later at Elmhurst’s York Theatre for a special 50th Anniversary commemorative private screening of Creature From the Black Lagoon, with popcorn and nostalgia recreating the moment Jan said “Yes!”
Ted initially worked in printing as a lithographer, in Chicago, until moving to Elmhurst, whereupon he launched his budding career as a real estate broker. He joined L.W. Reedy Real Estate in 1975, before transitioning to Re/Max in 1979. Ted lived to serve his clients and derived great pleasure in finding them their respective homes. In 1982, Ted was designated the Top Producer in Northern Illinois, among many honors and recognitions he received over a decades-long career that found him happily working until the age of 85.
Ted loved people from all walks of life and especially lived to serve others. He served as President of the Kiwanis Club of Elmhurst, of which he was a loyal member and enjoyed attending regular meetings from 1977 until July, 2024, when he moved out of the town he so loved. Carrying the iconic, oversized American flag each year as he marched with fellow Kiwanians, Ted delighted in recognizing familiar faces along the Elmhurst parade route, which always prompted him to stop for those friends and family he knew, dip the majestic flag, and proudly honor the Red, White & Blue and the country he served. He loved flipping pancakes each year and serving breakfast to the greater Elmhurst community who attended the annual Kiwanis Pancake Day, which he faithfully attended for decades. Whether energetically volunteering time to sell Kiwanis Peanuts on Peanut Day, volunteering to serve meals at DuPage P.A.D.S., or attending his children’s and grandchildren’s myriad of extracurricular activities and sporting events, Ted was a devoted husband, son and a most loving and present father/grandfather/great-grandfather, who loved to give back to his community.
In addition to loving his work and his pigeon flying, Ted treasured every opportunity to golf a foursome with his sons, hit a bucket of balls with his
grandkids, birdwatch with Jan, and help to serve as the de facto neighborhood “triage” for any injured bird that neighbors would bring to his door. One could often find him catching a movie and popcorn at Elmhurst’s York Theatre, attending live theatrical performances with Jan, enjoying post-church Sunday breakfast with friends & family and, having grown up on Chicago’s South Side, the occasional White Sox game at Comiskey Park. He loved camping with his family, countless summers at Lake Summerset (his favorite “home-away-from-home”), accompanying his children on campouts for the Elmhurst YMCA Indian Guides and Princesses organizations, spending quality time with dear neighbors and friends, frequenting neighborhood garage sales, and, though he demonstrated an unparalleled work ethic and tackled every work day with an unwavering vigor, he gravitated primarily toward life’s simple pleasures. Family ranked as Ted’s top priority and he lived every day immensely grateful that life allowed him to reside in close proximity to his kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids.
As empty-nesters, Ted and Jan enjoyed sharing time between Illinois and Florida, where they amassed a wonderful group of dear friends they would regularly join for line dancing, dinner theatre, shared meals, holiday gatherings, and flea market jaunts, at which they enjoyed meeting new friendly faces each week, while seeking out unique treasures to send to the family.
As their children grew older, Ted and Jan’s travels took them to varied destinations, including a particularly significant trip to Poland to explore his parents’ homeland and connect with distant relatives Ted never had had the opportunity to meet. On June 7, 2017, Ted was humbled to take part in the 78th Honor Flight Chicago, a special chartered flight, bringing Chicago veterans to Washington D.C. to pay tribute to their service, which marked an especially poignant and impactful experience in Ted’s life.
Ted was an amazing self-taught musician, who played the harmonica by ear and, at age 95, still captivated his neighbors with his musical prowess, as they alternated taking turns entertaining each other, sharing songs and performing their respective favorites to the delight of all those around them. He regularly played “The Helena Polka” and “You are My Sunshine” on his harmonica, all the while alighting the room with his equally befitting joy for life. He loved music and could listen for hours to his repertoire of favorites such as Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “Memory” and Debussy’s “Clair de Lune”. Ted radiated a habitually jovial sense of humor and loved to make people smile and laugh. He leaves behind a legacy never to be duplicated, but ever to be cherished.
God blessed all who knew Ted with a gift of immeasurable value. How grateful those he crossed paths with are to have known him, enjoyed him, learned from him, laughed with him, and loved him throughout such a wonderfully prolific life. Ted will forever live in the hearts of his family and those he touched along the way.
Ted is survived by his loving wife, Janet; his four children: Ted Jr. (Kristin), Tim (Rose), John (Sally), Jane (Troy); his 14 grandchildren: Alexandria (Mark), Katie, Hannah, Taylor (Erin), Grace, Gabriela (Charlie), Desiré, Gabrielle (Moises), Brittany, Ethan, Alex (Elyse), Bailey, Flanagan, Moleigh; AND his 11 great-grandchildren: Gianna, Timmy, Greg, Andrew, Luke, Paul, Grace, Claire, Bruce, Lilly and Aaron.
A Celebration of Life is scheduled in June, 2025, which would have marked Ted and Jan’s 66th Anniversary. In lieu of flowers, and in the spirit of Ted’s commitment to service, please consider joining a service organization and/or giving back to the community and helping others.
In light of recent catastrophic damage sustained in North Carolina and Tennessee from historic Hurricane Helene, and to honor Ted’s life’s mission of procuring quality homes for those he served, please consider helping the vast communities of residents rendered homeless and caught completely off-guard by supporting Samaritan’s Purse, a non-profit organization working around the clock to ensure that individuals and families, whose homes and livelihoods were destroyed by unannounced flooding, have a warm, safe dwelling in which to shelter this winter and beyond. Online donations can be made at samaritanspurse.org or via mail to: Samaritan’s Purse, P.O. Box 3000, Boone, NC 28607.