Jean A. Buttels

100 Years Loved, Jean Buttles passed away on February 5, 2026, at her home surrounded by family. Jean planted kindness and harvested love for over a century. She was born in Chicago on January 8, 1926, to Emma and James Stanek. When Jean’s mother died, she was taken in by her grandparents, Czech immigrants Anna and Vaclav Stanek where they raised her on a farm in Cloverdale, IL until her father remarried. We have photos of Jean standing on Army Trail Road when it was just a dirt lane. Her grandparents farmed with horses and tools from the old country. Jean liked to help make Kolachke and to eat all the raisins in the pantry, making Bubbie (grandma) upset when she found them missing again. She talked about her grandpa keeping chicks warm behind the wood cookstove and driving to the gas station during war rationing where they always managed to “find” a bag of sugar in the back seat of the car. Jean could still speak the Czech language taught to her by her grandparents.

As a young woman she worked as a switchboard operator while living in the Southside of Chicago, watching the men come back from World War II. One of the things she loved to do was to go to USO dances and dance with the boys. She met her husband on a blind date on New Year’s Eve dancing at the Aragon Ballroom. John was a handsome U.S. Marine who was a good dancer. They married in a borrowed wedding dress and suit since items were hard to find after the war. Their three children, Diane, John and Jim, were the greatest joys of Jean’s life. After their divorce, in an era when women were finally coming into their own, Jean was a pioneer. To make her living, she cleaned homes and ran a boarding house in Cloverdale for seasonal laborers of the Chicagoland area. She watched local teens grow up working at Glenbard North High School while entertaining adults and scaring kids with her famous witch character at Sonny Acres Farm.  

Jean loved to travel and she visited many places in the USA and abroad. She loved to camp and as a young mother would spend weeks camping at Devil’s Lake State Park. She drove the Alaskan-Canada highway twice, long before it was modernized. They would camp in the back of a pickup trailer along the way. She visited England, Germany and the Czech Republic, visiting the house and villages of her relatives. She spent three very happy years traveling, listening to Willy Nelson and eating asparagus on toast with her special friend, Bob, who was so very dear to her heart. She traveled and even camped into her 80s!     

Jean will be missed by so many people, her daughter, Diane Chaffee and preceded in death by son-in-law, Randy Chaffee; her son, John Weston Buttles and daughter-in-law, Linda Buttles; daughter-in-law, Michelle Buttles and preceded in death by her son, James Buttles; granddaughter, Lisa Stinehart and husband, Chad Stinehart; grandson, Weston Buttles and wife, Rachael and great-grandson, Ricky; grandson, Jeff Buttles; granddaughter, Stacia Bartovics and husband, Jeff Bartovics and great-grandchildren, Rowan, Iris, Maggie, Gianna, Regina, Faustina, Adele, Blaise and James; and grandson, Keith Murray and wife, Melissa Murray.   

Throughout her life Jean was surrounded by a large extended family and community of neighbors and friends touched by her generosity, kindness, lively spirit and excitement for life. She was a happy 100-year-old who was grateful for such a beautiful and long life.   

The family would like to extend a special thank you to those who helped while Jean was home and supported the family in her passing. Thank you to the caring and skilled nursing facility staff at Oakwood Village Prairie Ridge Rehab. Thank you to the angelic staff at Agrace HospiceCare. Thank you to David and Natalie Crain, owners of Hallmark Homecare who helped us grant Jean’s wish after rehab to be back in her home.  

A memorial gathering celebrating Jean’s life will be held later in the year at Devil’s Lake State Park.

Donations in Jean’s name may be made to Agrace HospiceCare. Online condolences may be made at www.gundersonfh.com.

 
Gunderson East

Funeral & Cremation Care

5203 Monona Drive

(608) 221-5420