by Barb Quaintance
On the South Side of Chicago, Leonard and Helen Wolniak ran a funeral home that had been in the family since 1922. They also raised five daughters, Nancy, Laura, Janet, Christina, and Karen. Born in the 1950s and ‘60s, three of the girls—Laura, Christina, and Karen—had a rare genetic condition, PKU, that wasn’t properly diagnosed or adequately treated until many years later. Today, babies are routinely tested for PKU, and with a specialized diet, they develop normally. Nancy and Janet were always very involved in their lives and became legal guardians after the death of their parents.
Laura, Christina (lovingly called Tinka), and Karen have cognitive disabilities as well as varying degrees of physical impairment. When their parents could no longer care for their three daughters at home, the parents moved their daughters into a CILA group home through St. Colette’s of Illinois in Mokena; they lived there for 25 years. They attended a sheltered workshop in Tinley Park. The family was well aware of Misericordia, as Janet Wolniak Bender worked at Misericordia South for twenty-five years, starting as a music therapist and eventually becoming Director of Misericordia South. Nancy Wolniak Cook, who had a degree in special education, helped with the family business and became a licensed director/embalmer. Nancy was also familiar with Misericordia, as Wolniak Funeral Home provided some funeral services for Misericordia residents.
by Barb Quaintance
During the Aging With Grace webinars, staff from a variety of disciplines—Speech, OT, PT, Behavior, Nutrition, etc., shared what they look for as residents age. It raised the question: Is anyone taking a holistic look at the residents’ functional changes? It’s Misericordia, so, of course, the answer was Yes.
Chris Hegg Krackenberger, VP of Residential Services, explained that residents are routinely assessed at “functional change” meetings. These are interdisciplinary meetings when staff take a look at behavioral, physical, or functional changes that they observe in a resident. Some residential areas, such as McAuley and Marian Center, hold these meetings monthly. Other residential areas do them on a quarterly or as-needed basis. For example, if a Qualified Intellectual Disabilities Professional (Q) notices that a resident is not functioning as they have in the past or is exhibiting new behaviors, the Q will request a meeting to gather input from behavioral and physical therapies, DT/CDS, etc. The group shares what they see to determine a plan of action. This may include medical follow-up as well as strategies to help the resident cope and adapt to the changes they’re experiencing.
Attention Southside Misericordia families!
The Misericordia Hearts and Flour Bakery will have a tent at both the Tinley Park and Beverly Farmers Markets this year! Both markets are looking for Misericordia families that would be interested in volunteering at our tent. This is a great way for people on the southside to support Misericordia without having to drive all the way up to our main campus!
Sign up for shifts at the Beverly market at this link, and for shifts at the Tinley Park farmers market at this link.
Please let friends and family know to stop by our booths and support us this season!
by Linda Buchalo
Are you looking for a way to give back? Are you interested in having some fun? Do you want to support one of Chicago’s most treasured organizations? Become a Misericordia volunteer! You can make a difference by choosing from many different opportunities. When you volunteer at Misericordia, expect to make new friends, have a good time, and feel rewarded.
Let’s talk about how to get started and cover some of the many volunteer opportunities that are available.
The easiest way to jump into a volunteer role is to attend an orientation for new volunteers. At that meeting, staff try to match someone’s current interests and availability with current volunteer needs.
For those who were unable to join the Aging With Grace Workshop Series, videos of the 3 sessions are available on YouTube. Click the buttons below.
Part 2: Behavior, Emotional Wellness, and Meaningful Engagement
by Barb Quaintance
We all know the basics of Candy Days: volunteers in the community raising awareness and funds for Misericordia, Giving Pages, candy packets, etc., etc. But here are some additional fun facts and stories from 2026 Candy Days that might be new to you!
Our MFA Benefit is ready and waiting for your help! As we all know, volunteering with other Misericordia family members is a great way to get to know one another.
There are volunteer positions for everyone! A few times are available prior to the event (June 23 and June 24); however, most positions are on the day of the event, June 25. (Please note that if volunteering during the event, purchasing a ticket is required.)
There are many slots to fill, so we need many volunteers to ensure the Benefit is successful.
Please click here for details and to sign up!
Thanks so much!
Merrily Smith
Volunteer Chair
Misericordia's fourth State of the State for Employees took place on Wednesday, April 15. Multiple sessions were offered to ensure employees across all shifts had an opportunity to participate. The employees heard from Fr. Jack and some of the senior leaders about the projects underway to help employees and the organization work smarter, not harder.
Click here to access and view this video presentation.
April 2026Campus Connections is a monthly publication for Misericordia Staff. BUT, it’s chock-full of features of interest to our families: meet the staff, see our new residents, and learn about the great things happening behind the scenes at Mis!
Click on the down arrow next to Misericordia Info in the menu bar at the top of the page and then click on Campus Connections to see the current and past editions.
Due to a policy change, we are now allowing only MFA Members (parents/guardians) to register for the mfa-sibs.org website. But no worries! There is a lot of information and great articles available for friends, family, siblings, residents, and Misericordia staff to see without having an account to log in to. The other information that appears after logging in pertains only to MFA Members.
And a note to account holders, please DO NOT download the MFA Directory or share any of the information in it!
I am in the process of cleaning up the current database of users by deleting inactive accounts (anyone who hasn’t logged in since before the beginning of 2021) and some other non-MFA member accounts. So, if you try to log in and find your account gone, simply click on New Member Registration and register again.
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