Obituary of Shirley Balger

August 29, 1930 - May 28, 2024

Shirley E. Balger. Age 93 of Lincoln Park.

Beloved wife of the late John Balger.  Loving mother of James (Sue) Balger, Barbara (Morris) Byrd, John (Yen) Balger and the late Debra (Leo) Adami.  Dearest grandmother of Abigail Balger, Michael (Katie) Balger, Anthony Bonsall, Michael (Jennifer) Schuler, Jennifer Byrd, Nhung (Khanh) Nguyen, Lisa Balger, John (Courtney) Balger, Joshua Adami and David (Amanda) Adami.  Dear great grandmother of Silas, Lael, Emelia, Wyatt, Samuel, Jack, Annie, Ashley, Ryan, Steven, Haley, Camden, Sierra, Reese, Sara, Brian, Zachary, Hai, Danne, Aiden, Hunter and the late Brittany. Great great grandmother of Aurora.  Also survived by many nieces and nephews.  Preceded in death by her parents, Leland Switzer and Elizabeth Larson; and siblings, Robert Switzer and Virginia Belanger.

Family Tribute

My last remaining grandparent died this morning, at 93 years of age. Shirley Balger was to me, a great woman. She was a soulful musician, artist, poet and singer. A mother, wife, grandmother, sister, aunt and daughter. She was a fantastic dancer, entering a Charleston (1940s style) competition at the local mall, for fun, then winning. She loved God and her church and loved being a part of the choir. She could hold a conversation with anyone, was witty and funny. She played cards, could have a drink or two but was always a lady. She was a wonderful cook and taught me about making a tasty meal out of nothing. She loved Shirley Temple and playing the sax. I always thought she probably should have been famous. She would teach me what she knew, let me watch scary movies with her and eat junk food when I was little (shhhhhh). My grandfather adored her, who she lost over 20 years ago. May they find each other and dance on.

-Abigail Balger