Joseph Padilla Obituary

Joseph (Joe) Padilla, 89, of Waukegan, Illinois passed away on December 22, 2020; peacefully in his sleep. He was born to his parents Elodia and Manual Padilla on November 18, 1931 in Libertyville, Illinois. He graduated from Waukegan High School, and then went on to join the Air Force. He was stationed in England, where he met his wife Betty. He then moved Betty and his daughter back to the states where they continued adding to their family with six sons. He had a huge love for family, and how could he not with seven children, Sue Vasquez (Carlos), Miguel Padilla (Sue), Stephen Padilla (Katie), Daniel Padilla, David Padilla (Angie), Larry Padilla (Elizabeth), and Chris Padilla (Zenaida). From his seven kids he was blessed with so many grandkids, that he always lost count; and was blessed with many great grandkids as well. After finishing with the Air Force, he spent most of his working years at International Harvester (Kamutsu); where he retired from. He made many friends from his years there and continued to golf with them after he retired. Joe had so many passions. His love for his family had him follow his kids and grandkids through Drum Corp (Cavaliers), and sports. He had the biggest heart when it came to animals, and you weren’t even allowed to kill a bug in front of him. A ladder was kept near the house for his daily feedings to the squirrels, where he was also known to take a couple of falls from. He loved music, and you could always find him on the dance floor at any party, wedding, or celebration. Joe was preceded in death by his wife, Betty Padilla (Walker); his parents, Elodia & Manual Padilla (Mejia); siblings, Rudy Padilla, Edward Padilla, Dolores Perez (Padilla); his grandson, Shawn Miguel Padilla; and his niece, Christina Calderon. Visitation will be held on Monday, December 28th at Peterson Funeral Home 408 N. Sheridan Rd. Waukegan from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM. There will be a funeral mass at the St. Dismas campus of Little Flower Parish 2600 Sunset Ave. on Tuesday, December 29th at 10am. Due to COVID, if you do plan to attend the mass; please RSVP to Tanya at tspinarski@gmail.com by Monday evening. Interment will be at Ascension Cemetery in Libertyville. In lieu of flowers, you can make a donation in his name to the Waukegan Animal Shelter or the American Cancer Society. Please sign our online guestbook at www.waukeganfunerals.com.