EMMA M. GRZESIK

Emma Grzesik, 19, of Maple Park, died suddenly, on Tuesday, April 30, 2024.  Emma was born in Geneva, IL to Edward Grzesik and Michelle Wollter (nee Smith) on January 18, 2005.

Emma was raised in Maple Park and attended John Stewart Elementary school and Holy Cross Catholic School.  She graduated last year from Aurora Central Catholic School class of 2023. Emma loved spending time fishing with her Papa in Wisconsin or any body of water large enough to fish.  She lived to ride horses and rode to live.  She worked at Casey’s Safe Haven at the time she passed, which is a horse rescue that rehabilitates horses, donkeys, and mules in need, which Emma was very passionate about. When Emma wasn’t busy being a new college student, she spent all of her free time at Casey’s Safe Haven where she share-boarded her horse Bandit.  It was a mutual love affair between Emma and Bandit.  Emma was outgoing, loved the outdoors, and had an effervescent personality.  She was her calmest when she was with Bandit, he brought peace to her soul and happiness to her heart. A bit of a tom boy, she was never afraid to get her hands dirty, even playing softball as a young child which she was not a fan of, but she persevered.  She was not exactly athletic, but that didn’t stop her from trying volleyball from 7^th to 8^th grade on Holy Cross’ girls’ volleyball team.  She was an admirable teammate and friend. Emma had a major sweet tooth, she was not a fan of vegetables, and would much rather have her dessert first, before dinner, but who could blame her.  She never met a pudding cup that she didn’t like.

Art was one of Emma’s main passions, of course next to horses.  She was working towards a degree in photography and graphic design.  She was amazing at drawing and loved to draw pictures of horses and wolves and different characters that she created off the top of her head.  She loved to hone in on her craft, always working on improving her drawings. Emma focused the bulk of her energy on her education.  She had just started her college education as a freshman at Waubonsee Community College.  She loved going to college and looked forward to all of her new learning opportunities. She found out that she loved psychology and was fascinated by learning how the human brain worked. Prior to Emma’s passing, she was about to be inducted into the NSLS which is the honors society at Waubonsee Community College.  She took great pride in her scholarly achievements, as did her family. Never one to keep things to herself, she at times overindulged her family and friends with her innermost thoughts.  Emma had such an amazing sense of humor, she often had people rolling with laughter and was completely unaware of what was so funny. Humor came to her naturally. Her laugh was infectious, anyone who knew her, knew that they would be in for a good time when Emma was around. Her mom was her best friend. She often told Michelle, “You’re not my mother, you’re my best friend.”.  Anyone who took the time to get to know Emma is surely feeling something missing in their souls today.  She left an indelible mark on everyone who crossed her path.  

Emma is survived by her parents; Michelle (David) Wollter and Edward (Tricia) Grzesik, her maternal grandparents; William and Pamela Smith, her step siblings; Madison Wollter, David Patzer, Joseph Patzer, and Maggie Patzer, her aunts and uncles; Michael (Peggy) Smith and Sarah (Joe) Kiep, many cousins, and a whole family of friends.

Emma is reunited with her paternal grandparents; Edward and Shirlyn Grzesik.

A memorial visitation will be held on Tuesday, May 7, 2024 from 4:00p.m.–8:00p.m. at Conley Funeral Home in Elburn, IL.  A mass to celebrate Emma’s faith will be held on Wednesday, May 8, 2024 at 11:00a.m. at St. Gall Catholic Church in Elburn, IL.  Interment will be held privately immediately following the service.  To help celebrate Emma’s radiant life, her family asks that you wear colorful clothing for the visitation, especially blue, Emma’s favorite color.

In lieu of flowers, a memorial has been established in Emma’s name to raise money for Casey’s Safe Haven Holistic Horse Rescue, a cause that was close to Emma’s heart. Emma’s memorial can be reached on their home page via this link https://caseyssafehaven.org/ or you can donate to Emma’s GoFundMe via this link https://gofund.me/f2aa6e6b. Money raised via the GoFundMe will also be used to help the horses at Casey’s Safe Haven. Tributes may also be posted on the Conley Funeral Home Facebook Page, or at www.conleycare.com.