Ed Kramarczyk Memorial Fund

Hi, my name is Chuck Kramarczyk and I am raising funds to help cover the cost of the cremation for my father, Ed Kramarczyk. He passed away on 5/16/23 after a 7-month fight with cancer.

He was proud of his sons, he bragged about us to everyone. We are the men we are today because of his example. I got my love of sports from him and my athletic ability. He did make me a Sox fan, which I have been giving him crap about the last few years. My brother got his mechanical skills and can build or fix anything with his hands because of him. We saw how hard he and my mom worked to support my brother and me growing up, working two jobs 6 days a week to provide for us. It motivated me to go to college and get my degree. It motivated Andy to get into the Airforce and become an airplane mechanic. When Andy got married and started having a family, our father was very proud of him. He was able to meet his grandkids, Wyatt, Harleigh, and Ryker a few times over the years and that was always a huge highlight for him. He had pictures of them all over his apartment.

We will miss him. We will miss his stories, some might be too good to believe. He once hitchhiked from California to Chicago and had to stand on the side of the interstate in the middle of winter doing jumping jacks until a trucker picked him up. He regrets not punching Donald Trump Jr in the face in the 70s when at the Playboy mansion in Chicago, not sure I believe that one.

For those who don't know, here is what happened the last year regarding his health.

In August of last year, we moved him into a senior assistive living facility in Algonquin. He loved it, he was retired and ready to relax away his final years. In October of that year, we went to his doctor for his annual follow-up and heard great news, that he was controlling his diabetes well and he was doing great. However, he forgot to ask the doctor about the fluid buildup in his abdomen. When it didn't reside or improve, in November of 2022 we went to the ER. That is when we found out he had severe cirrhosis of the liver and multiple masses on his liver. We met with the Oncologist in December and he confirmed stage 4 cancer. The cancer was called cholangiocarcinoma. It started in the bile ducts behind the liver and transferred to the liver, making it stage 4. With all this, his liver was failing, causing the fluid to build up in his abdomen. Due to the cancer, we could not get him a liver transplant. He had multiple hospital visits to remove the fluid and make him more comfortable. There was no cure for this cancer, the hope was to originally stop the spread, we were delayed in starting Chemo because he caught covid in January. He started Chemo in February, but we only made it through two treatments, due to the number of fluids pumped into the body during the infusions, it made the fluid build up in his abdomen too quickly and made him miserable. He was hospitalized for a week to get back to normal. From February on, we were just managing his symptoms. We had a catheter inserted into his abdomen and we would drain the fluid 3 times a week.

It worked, it kept him out of the hospital and gave him time to visit with his family and friends at the end. My brother was able to come to visit for the first time in years to spend a weekend with us, cousins and friends would visit with him. He made new friends with people in his building, home health nurses. Everyone that came in contact with him loved his personality.

May is when his health turned for the worst, he lost all his energy and would mostly sleep. The last few weeks were tough, then on Friday, he was ready to go to hospice. We were able to get him into a facility in Barrington, I visited with him every day while he was there, and he was able to see and talk to me and Andy on his last day.

He is at rest now. He is with all three of his brothers, his friends, his parents, and our mom. He will be missed, but his memory will carry on in our hearts.

Thank you for reading this, all funds will go to cover his cremation.

Condolence cards can be sent to his son

Chuck Kramarczyk

804 12 Oaks Pkwy

Woodstock, IL 60098

Prayer cards can be provided if required.