Mary Alexis Ivanovich

Mary Alexis Schwitalla was born on 14 December, 1928 in Tulsa, OK. Mary Alexis was a devout Catholic.

Mary Alexis strove for academic excellence and to live her life according to the teachings of Jesus Christ. Mary Alexis' spiritual formation was heavily influenced by the writings of St. Francis De Sales and St. Jane Frances de Chantal. A clipped newspaper article in Mary Alexis' keepsakes records that on Sunday, 3 March 1935, along with Betty Agnes Frank, a fellow communicant, the young Mary Alexis Schwitalla received her first Holy Communion in the [Visitation] Academy Chapel during a Holy Mass celebrated by Reverend Alphonse M. Schwitalla, S. J., her uncle, then Dean of the St. Louis University School of Medicine.

Mary Alexis attended the Academy of the Visitation having received a National Honor Society Merit Scholarship in 1945. She attended Webster College (now Webster University) from 1945-1948 having received an A. S. Aloe Award in Biology in 1948. Mary Alexis entered St. Louis University in 1948 graduating Cum Laude in 1949 with a Degree in Biology. Then Mary Alexis attended St. Louis University School of Medicine from 1949-1953, having graduated with honors with a Medical Degree in 1953.

On Saturday, 8 January 1955, at the Blessed Sacrament Chapel, St. Louis Cathedral, Mary Alexis Schwitalla was united in marriage to Peter Theodore Ivanovich. From this union Mary Alexis gave birth to and raised three children: Matthew Alexis (Sanja) Ivanovich (b: 14 August 1955); Peter Alphonse (Karolina) Ivanovich (b: 17 December 1957) and Francis Joseph Peter (Diana) Ivanovich (b: 13 December 1962)

Mary Alexis supported her husband, Peter Theodore faithfully in marriage, and stood with him when Peter Theodore, an Enlisted Medical Physician was stationed in post WWII Germany, learned Dr. Peter's Croatian ancestral language, culture and customs, and taught them to speak Croatian at home. She accompanied Peter Theodore to San Francisco, CA, Stuttgart Germany, Croatia, Seattle and Spokane WA, Arlington, VA, Niles, IL and finally to Wilmette, IL their last home together. Peter Theodore preceded her in death on 16 November 2019.

Mary Alexis was a voracious reader of both fiction and non-fiction literature and medical journals. She was fascinated with the study of languages, especially Latin and Greek word derivations. She practiced hospitality and was a kind and extremely generous soul. She was very protective of and devoted to her children.

Mary Alexis was a licensed medical Physician in 3 States: Missouri, California and Illinois and practiced in medical clinics in both the suburbs and in Chicago, IL administering medical care to populations of people with severely limited economic means. Mary Alexis was Associate Medical Director for Teletype Corporation. In all these places she practiced her profession with due diligence and care. She is dearly loved and deeply missed.

A holy Funeral Mass will be offered for Mary Alexis Ivanovich on Tuesday, April 21, 2026 at Saint Josaphat's Parish in Chicago. Her internment will be celebrated privately among her family and friends. In lieu of Flowers, donations can be made to the School Sisters of Notre Dame in St. Louis, MO.