Francis Joseph Oelerich III

1960 - 2024

Francis Joseph Oelerich, III

09/25/1960 - 12/2/2024

Francis Joseph Oelerich, III passed away at his home in Chicago on December 2nd, 2024. The eldest son of the late Francis Joseph Oelerich, Jr. and Anita Midlam Oelerich, he is survived by his best friend and wife of 42 years, Mary; his daughters, Molly (Andrew) Kidd, Margo (Nate) Johnson, Madeline (Ryan) Shea, Megan, and Mamie; his mother Anita; grandchildren, Mick, Sophie, Clare, Kelly, Grace, and Phoebe Kidd, and Lucy Johnson; his siblings, Susan (Rem) Myers, Kurt (Gwen) and Greg (Delight) and Sally (Tony Deger).

Born in Toledo, Ohio, Frank and his family moved many times throughout his childhood. Notably, a stint in Wisconsin in first grade, which led him to trade in his Bears hat to become a lifelong Green Bay Packers fan, although he always stayed true to his beloved Cubs. He graduated from Ottawa Hills High School in Toledo in 1978, where he stood out in football and baseball and was the class salutatorian. It was around this time that he met the love of his life, Mary.

Frank attended the University of Notre Dame, near Mary, who was at St. Mary's College in South Bend. He earned a BBA in finance and business economics with high honors (and without much effort) from the University of Notre Dame in 1982. That June, Frank and Mary were married at St. Ann's in Toledo, OH.

The two moved to New York, where Frank began his career in finance at Morgan Stanley, where he would work for the next 23 years. He earned an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1986, where he was elected a George F. Baker Scholar and a Loeb Rhoades Fellow. Frank became a Managing Director for Morgan Stanley in 1995, where he would lead its mergers and acquisitions activity, until he was recruited to run Deutsche Bank's M&A business from 2008 to 2017. In 2018, he had the pleasure to reunite with many colleagues from his Morgan Stanley tenure by joining XMS Partners as Managing Director. He left an indelible impact on the many clients, colleagues, and mentees with whom he worked over his 42 years in the industry, who will remember his brilliant mind, quick wit, and knack for bringing people together and getting things done.

While impressive and important to him, his career was never more important to him than his family. One of the biggest factors in his and Mary's decision to reside in downtown Chicago was so that he could maximize time with his family, not losing precious time to a lengthy commute. His wife and five daughters were his pride and joy. Mary was his favorite (and most patient) golf partner and they played more than a thousand rounds of golf, although he often lost to her and his ball to the woods. He had a cadre of steadfast golf friends as well, who all enjoyed his aggressive style of play and his great sportsmanship about the outcome of any given round. Although Mary outshone him in golf, Frank dominated their other favorite pastime: trivia night at Butch McGuire's, where he was able to showcase his incredible vault of gratuitous knowledge, except for pop culture and "hippity-hop." Frank was a man of incredible faith, a faith which he shared with Mary and gifted to his children. Being able to watch his daughters grow into the people they have become, and finally gaining sons in the men they chose to be with filled him with immense happiness. His seven grandchildren adored their "Papa," and he loved to spend time with them. He was thrilled that many of them inherited his fabulous hair, but thankfully not his nose.

His last day on Earth was a beautiful, simple, ordinary Sunday, spent with his entire family. Having gone to mass at Holy Name Cathedral that morning, his family met for brunch afterwards at their favorite place, Butch McGuire's. We were eagerly anticipating the two additions to the Oelerich/Johnson crew, scheduled to arrive December 4th, and Megan and Matt's upcoming wedding in June. We are grateful for every day we had with him, and selfishly wish we were going to have more, but we are heartened by the fact that he is now with God.

Whether in the boardroom, on the golf course, or otherwise among family and friends, Frank put forth a great joie de vivre that put others at ease and caught others still off guard. Without being irreverent, he found and brought humor to endless settings. His quick mind and unusual wit made him a joy to be with, and his legion of friends and growing family collected along the way will surely miss his uniquely charming approach to everything he did.

Services for Frank will be held on Friday, December 20, 2024, at Holy Name Cathedral in Chicago. Visitation will begin at 1:00 p.m. and the Funeral Mass at 3:00 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you consider making a donation to Woodlands Academy of the Sacred Heart in his memory. Frank sent all five of his daughters to Woodlands Academy, and served on the board there for many years.

847-675-1990

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