Return to flip book view

Life Lessons A Tribute a keepsake from Memoir for Me

To my family

All the adversity I ve had in my life all my troubles and obstacles have strengthened me You may not realize it when it happens but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you Walt Disney

Peggy and George drinking hot Irish whiskeys in Ireland Learning new ideas has always been important to Katie Haennicke and her family More often than not the lessons were found outside of books and the classroom Discoveries came in all shapes and forms from on the job experiences or everyday life Even travels brought new insight My parents went to Ireland and learned how to make proper hot Irish whiskeys Ever since that trip winters and colds haven t been the same Here are Katie s top life lessons learned from some of the people who matter most her parents George and Peggy her sister Jackie and her Uncle Mike 5

Lesson No 1 Family is defined by those who love and support you throughout life Growing up in Darien Illinois a western suburb of Chicago Katie Haennicke had a fairly typical happy childhood Her older sister Jackie lent her clothes when she was feeling nice sharing her Guess jeans peach colored sweater and matching Converse high tops Katie had two loving and involved parents of varying ethnic origins The family experienced both Irish and Polish traditions but really embarked on creating their own traditions One such tradition came on Thanksgiving a special holiday in the Haennicke house Aunts uncles cousins and friends would gather to give thanks laugh and play games Many years saw large crowds split up into the traditional adult and kid tables 6 Thanksgiving at the Haennicke House

George Jackie Peggy and Katie at a wedding One year I had a Haitian student who was working at my law firm join us She couldn t go home because the hurricane had demolished Haiti So she joined my family for our Thanksgiving She had a blast And to this day she plays spoons with her family and friends Games were always a tradition of the family In between helpings of turkey the group played favorites such as spoons Tripoli and Guesstures My sister and I are no longer allowed to be on the same team together We think too much alike and could guess what each other was thinking 7

The Haennicke hospitality was not limited to holidays The house on 71st street welcomed visitors any time of year Extended family members and friends came and went always knowing that they were welcomed to visit or even stay if needed It was the Haennicke House for the Wayward Soul The house had four bedrooms allowing the sisters their own space However in the early years Jackie and Katie had to share a room which led to some unique sleeping arrangements Jackie tried to convince me it was more comfortable to sleep in the bathtub I actually slept in there one night 8 Peggy on her wedding day surrounded by her family

Jackie Katie Peggy and Santa George Celebrating Katie s birthday Aunts uncles friends and cousins all stayed at the Haennicke Hotel while Katie was growing up impressing on her that her family was much more than her parents and sister With extra houseguests Peggy and George together with the girls kept the house tidy Every Saturday morning the girls would be awakened by loud music willing them out of bed and into chores The tunes varied from opera to James Taylor to Motown To this day I need music on when I clean The frequent extra company blurred the lines of family Uncle Mike lived in the Haennicke house for a couple of years when Katie was little and left a lasting impression I remember I was sad when he left without really knowing what that even was I don t think I had much distinction between Uncle and Brother then 9

Michael Marshall was Peggy s brother who was living with another relative after their parents passed away well before their time The living arrangement was not working out My Dad didn t hesitate He was to live with us George and Peggy took Mike in and planted the seeds for amazing relationships between him and their daughters Katie Jackie and Uncle Mike have since had many adventures together from wild concerts at the House of Blues to Fryapalooza a uniquely themed dinner of deep fried everything We were all so sick the next day but it was so much fun We fried everything from Rueben rolls to Snickers Uncle Mike at Jimmy Buffet 10

Jackie George and Katie celebrating in Vegas Though the night at the House of Blues was legendary not all concerts were meant to be In 1992 Katie was pining to see Guns and Roses Uncle Mike graciously agreed to take her and a friend Debbie Caruso to see the show The girls were thrilled and got all decked out to see their rock legends The night of the concert they drove all the way out to the Rosemont Horizon only to find out the Chicago show was cancelled after warrants were issued for the lead singer following a troublesome performance the night before The girls were heartbroken My uncle offered to buy us liquor but I thought it was a trick I thought he d tell my mom so I said no We just came home sad and disappointed 11

Lesson No 2 Believe in yourself because your family believes in you As Katie grew up her relationship with her Uncle Mike grew stronger He had her back when things went wrong We ve built up a lot of trust He s been there through thick and thin And the feeling was mutual Katie s legal expertise was tapped over many phone calls between them He definitely has been a trusted advisor to me but it s been a twoway street He sought my advice out and gave me confidence as a lawyer knowing he trusted me 12 Fun times with Uncle Mike at Jimmy Buffet

Katie and Jackie Katie s sister Jackie was another source of love and support even if her sister liked to mess with her a little I had dimples and she told me they were birth defects caused by forceps during delivery Katie and Jackie had typical sibling rivalries growing up but became much closer as young adults living together in their family house in Darien Their parents split time between Illinois and Florida giving them the run of the family house Living together definitely brought us closer but she and I have slightly opposite personalities I m definitely more uptight while Jackie is much more easygoing My organizational tendencies would kick in while Jackie would ve rather let housework slide She s since gotten much better but at the time she was no Betty Crocker 13

If Katie is more of the studious sister then Jackie is the social people minded one The combination of personalities was very mutually beneficial Jackie has helped me intellectually in ways she ll never know She s showed me how to be more social and observant of human nature She s taught me to use more of my common sense Katie has always been seen as strong and independent But she is quick to admit she would not be where she is without her sister I don t think she realizes how much she has affected my life It s easy to see this as parents raising you But I don t think it s as obvious with other family members 14 Jackie and Katie at the NHL Winter Classic

The Haennicke side of the family celebrating a family wedding Lesson No 3 Be grateful for what you have and give generously to others Katie has had many role models in her life but her parents George and Peggy have taught her to give until it hurts In addition to always having an open door to family and friends who need a place to stay her parents have been giving in many other ways Wanting to preserve the traditional meaning of Christmas on December 25th the Haennickes refrained from gift giving once the girls were a bit older Instead they took their daughters for a fun shopping spree on the day following Thanksgiving 15

This was way before all the stores were doing it We d get up at 6am and hit Marshall Fields just as it opened My Dad would be telling us what he liked or didn t like My Mom would show us various outfits and we would have fun picking everything out George was a strong and stoic man who could come across as grumpy or domineering But to his daughters he was an oversize teddy bear with a keen eye for fashion We kid about how good his fashion sense was When he was a kid he owned a light dinner jacket and full tux because you never know when you might need one Peggy and George on their wedding day

George and Peggy demonstrating the true meaning of love Whether it was a Cabbage Patch Kid named Angelina or a Dana Buckman fur lined top George and Peggy made sure the girls got spoiled at least one day per year And by 10am they were done and would celebrate their spoils over breakfast But George and Peggy were models of generosity that went well beyond material goods They were always giving of their time and took Katie s call no matter what Peggy worked her way up through the ranks at Kemper Insurance Broadspire and Aetna and became a leading authority in disability claims Now retired Peggy has taught her daughter a lot about generosity 17

I learned a lot about my Mom during her retirement party One story that came out was about an employee who brought her small daughter to work and hid her under the desk It turns out they were sleeping in the car in the work parking lot My mom found out about it and did what she could including finding them a place to rent to help them get on their feet Through words and actions her parents have taught her how to treat others They are yin and yang They have taught me the true meaning of love I see them fall in love over and over again so I know what is really possible and won t settle for anything less It s probably the reason why I m still single 18 Celebrating a family wedding

Finding support after law school article rejection Lesson No 4 You never know what the future holds Prepare the best you can and let life take care of the rest The Haennicke family has had their share of medical issues We ve probably financed a wing at a hospital by now The family stuck together through these health crises and other challenges When I was in law school my article got rejected after working on it for an entire semester I learned about it right before Christmas break and right before we were leaving for a cruise Katie was devastated but her family encouraged her to not to give up Resolving not to be defeated Katie found another journal that accepted the article just the way it was written I wouldn t have been able to get it published if my family hadn t supported me and believed in me 19

Whether flying down to Florida on a moment s notice running over to the house because the sump pump failed again or just listening on the phone George Peggy Jackie Katie and Mike were always there for each other I know that if I need help my family is only a phone call away In addition to each other Katie believes there is a higher power at play From helping them get jobs when it was time to move on watching over them during travels abroad or during countless medical issues Katie believes they have had guardian angels working overtime I know that my grandparents watch over me And no matter what the future holds I know they will always watch over me 20 Family celebrating Katie s law school graduation 2000

Jackie and Katie in Disney World Lesson No 5 Be fearless Take risks Have fun Whenever life proved to be almost too much to bear or when they just wanted to have a little fun Katie and her family would retreat to Walt Disney World and act like kids again I throw away all the cares in the world and instantly relax We have had so many happy family memories at Disney With a stressful job first in private practice and now in risk management Katie can trade in her business suits for more fun attire 21

I wear horns on my head that light up Nobody judges you The Haennickes have made memories all over the map For Katie s 30th birthday the whole family went on a cruise together to Key West and Mexico Our bar bill was more than the entire bill for the cruise That s my family How else to encourage late night karaoke performances My Dad sang Ring of Fire To this day it lives on in infamy But my Mom Aunt and sister were up on stage in their own right performing their hearts out In Las Vegas the family displayed their singing skills on a gondola ride Cousin Maggie an opera singer showed the gondolier how it s done We re kind of a crazy family 22 George relaxing at his bar Peggy and her sister Lourdine singing karaoke

Aunt Carol Jackie Grandma Peggy Marge Katie and Uncle Bill Katie and Jackie certainly have had their own adventures together Whether dancing with cute old men in Austria or attempting to see some holiday lights the two always find adventure One year Jackie and I attempted to see Brookfield Zoo s Holiday Lights The weather was unseasonably mild so the rest of Chicago decided to show up too It ended up taking hours to get within a mile of the zoo and then they closed the park due to crowds But the two laughed the entire time in the car made fun of other cars and just enjoyed the misadventure Of course Katie made Jackie promise to go the next year But once again Jackie s luck won out as the weather was mild once again 23

My sister helps me find the humor in the smallest of things We laugh a lot together It s an amazing trait Even all the trips to the hospital have become a source of humor While most families celebrate Thanksgiving with a roasted turkey the Haennickes bake a turkey cake and then grab a knife Every year we exhibit our surgeries and illnesses on our turkey cake It s pretty decimated at this point The family that can laugh at misfortune and then make a cake out of it is something special and Katie knows it How do you sum up a lifetime of support generosity and love I try to repay in actions but it will never equate to what they have given me I would not be who I am today without my family 24 At a family wedding