Estelle Rattenbury Obituary

Estelle "Estell" Deloris Milles Rattenbury, 96, of Lombard, and formerly Glen Ellyn and Maywood, died June 29 of Alzheimer's Disease at Beacon Hill in Lombard. She was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, but moved to Maywood in 1917. She graduated in 1931 from Proviso (East) High School and received her 2-year teaching degree at Northern Illinois State Teachers College (now Northern Illinois University) where she met her husband, Stanley Mark Rattenbury. She later received a Bachelors degree from Pestalozzi Froebel Teachers College, Chicago, and Masters degree from Roosevelt University, Chicago. She began her teaching career in 1935 at Garfield School in Maywood where she taught for about 4 years. After her two daughters were of school age, she returned to teaching by starting the first Kindergarten at Melrose Park Grade School. Later she taught mostly third grade at Roosevelt School in Bellwood, retiring in 1972. She sang in the choir at First Baptist Church of Maywood until she and Stan moved to Glen Ellyn. In August 1984 they moved again to become the first residents of the newly completed Beacon Hill retirement community in Lombard. Before long she organized and directed a chorus of residents who loved to sing, known as "The Hilltoppers" which continues until today. Estelle was preceded in death by her husband Stanley Mark Rattenbury, her mother Cora Gertrude King Milles, her father Charles Lafayette Milles, her sisters (Ruth Struthers, Fern Jacobs Luedecke, Mildred Milles, and Myrtle Smith), her stepmother Ruth Milles, her half-brother Charles L. "Chuck" Milles, Jr., and her grandson Daniel Drew Rehfeldt. She is survived by two daughters, Penelope (John) Lord and Elizabeth (David) Diman; four grandchildren, Stephen (Sue) Rehfeldt, Christopher (Lucinda) Rehfeldt, Holly (Andrew) Shermer, and Heidi (John) Rykert; seven great-grandchildren: David, Trisha, Matthew, Timothy, Aaron, Daniel, and Caleb Rehfeldt, and Gloriann Rykert; and numerous nieces and nephews. A memorial service will be at 3 p.m. Sunday, August 21 in the parlor of Morgan Park Baptist Church, 11024 S. Bell Avenue, Chicago. Interment will be at 11 a.m. Monday in Mount Emblem Cemetery, Elmhurst. Memorial gifts may be sent to Baptist Campus Ministry, 449 Normal Road, DeKalb, IL 60115. Arrangements by Leonard Memorial Home, 630-469-0032.