John W. "Bing" McIlreevy age 87 of Lansing, IL, formerly of Chicago, IL, passed away on Thursday, November 11, 2021. John is survived by his loving wife Ruth (Kinsey) of 66 years, 1 sibling, brother-in-law William Kinsey, daughter Joan Oliva (Anthony), son John McIlreevy (Chae), daughter Mary Wegrzyn (Barry), grandchildren John Oh, Karen, David, Emily, Michael, Cassie, Anna, Sami, & Patrick, great grandchildren, Meaghan, Sarah Rose, Ashley, Adam, Mia, Ava, Wyatt, Jayden, Ryan, & Sean. He is preceded in death by his parents, John and Clara, and two siblings.

A Celebration Of Life for John will take place, Friday, November 19, 2021 at the Schroeder-Lauer Funeral Home, 3227 Ridge Road, Lansing, Illinois. Friends may visit with the family from 2:00 to 5:30 PM, with services immediately following.

John was a proud Veteran of the United States Navy during the Korean War. He was a union electrician, IBEW Local 134 for over 50 years, a member & past Commander of South Shore Post 388 American Legion. He loved his children and grandchildren and enjoyed being the family photographer and joke teller. He enjoyed telling stories of his younger days growing up on the South Side of Chicago. He would never let anyone else pick up the tab and would make sure his grandchildren had some walking around money, including slipping them a folded up $10 bill after they altar served at Sunday Mass. He taught them, among other things their mom would not approve of, how to explode firecrackers in a bucket of water. He would make use of his workshop and make his grandchildren furniture, an art easel, and doll furniture. Try as he could, his son-in-law Barry was never able to win an argument with him. John put in a ceiling fan for his daughter Joan because her spouse was afraid of  electricity. Thanks to John, there are actually quite a few ceiling fans spinning in the Chicago area. John was generous with his time and was willing to help anyone that needed it and asked for nothing in return. He will be deeply missed by his family.