Sara Trippel Funck

At the age of 90, Sara Trippel Funck passed away peacefully on January 3, 2026 surrounded by her loved ones. She was born in Mishawaka, Indiana on March 24, 1935 to Helen (Dillon) and Victor Trippel, the youngest of four siblings. Sara embraced her Irish & German heritage with enthusiasm, curiosity and joy. She cheered on the University of Notre Dame football team with great interest and knowledge. Sara was devoted to her parents and siblings and was the most favorite, most generous and most beloved aunt to her many nieces and nephews. She was affectionately known to all friends and family alike as “Aunt Sara”. Sara is survived by her sister, Barbara Trippel McCarthy O’Keefe of Chicago, and her children, Mary Meg, Brigid, Colleen, Tom, Maureen, Patrick, Sara, Sean and their families; her late brother, Jim’s children, Ron, Chuck, Terry, Patrick, Michael, Kathleen and their families; her late sister Betty’s children, Danny, Jane (both predeceased), Dick, Jone, John, Tom, Mitzi, Tim and their families. Sara was predeceased by her parents, Helen and Vic Trippel, her husbands, Rich Rogne and George Funck, her brother, Jim Trippel of Mishawaka and her sister Betty Satran of Wisconsin. Sara was a proud alumna of St Mary’s College, Notre Dame, IN and completed graduate studies at Indiana University, Bloomington, IN.

She committed her life work to teaching at the primary levels for 44 years, including over 35 years in Los Angeles with several years teaching in Mishawaka, Germany & England. After she retired from the Los Angeles Unified School District, she continued her love of educating young students by teaching in several religious education programs in California and Indiana. For almost 40 years, Sara lived in the Los Angeles area and hosted many family and friends to a grand tour of sunny Southern California. She then moved to Long Beach, IN to be closer to family and friends where she resided until 2021 when she moved to St Joseph Village in Chicago. Faith was of utmost importance to Sara in everything she did in her life. She was a faithful and devoted Catholic, attending daily Mass, saying the Rosary before she started her day and offering her services to clean the churches. She took care of many Holy Cross religious sisters in Michigan City and always loved a good chat with her parish priests. Sara had a keen sense of adventure, traveling the world, including an African safari, following in the footsteps of St Paul in the Holy Land, and all throughout Europe. She was always happiest close to home, though, hosting her annual Fourth of July celebration to bring her nieces and nephews together for a day of food, beach and camaraderie. She was the family memory bank and could tell stories of her younger years with amazing detail of people, places and events. Sara enjoyed her time at St Joseph Village, especially daily Mass with Fr Mike. Sara loved her gentle, loving, generous, thoughtful caregivers, especially Evelyn, Linda, Emma and Tess. Sara’s family is so grateful for the beautiful care they gave Sara throughout her time at St Joseph Village.

Sara lived an extraordinary life, filled with the love of God and service to others. She was always thinking of what to do to make someone’s day brighter, a rotisserie chicken from Costco, a gallon of Valpo vanilla ice cream, a batch of oatmeal raisin cookies, some German mustard for the grilled brats or treating to a Friday night perch dinner at Swing Bellies. We have been blessed with her generous loving life and will miss her.

A Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Saturday, January 31, 2026 at 11:00 am at The Chapel at St Joseph Village, 4021 West Belmont Ave, Chicago, IL. In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation in Sara’s memory to National Immigrant Justice Center online @ www.immigrantjustice.org/donate or mailed to NIJC Attn: Carrie Schwarz, 111 W. Jackson Blvd., Suite 800, Chicago, IL 60604, or to St Mary’s College online at saintmarys.edu/donate or mailed to St. Mary’s College, Development Office, 110 LeMans Hall, Notre Dame, IN 46556-5001.