Robert John Bollacker Jr, 59, of Midlothian, IL, finished his 389-day battle with brain cancer on Tuesday, March 24, 2026. Born at Christ Hospital in Oak Lawn, IL on December 27, 1966, he was the son of the late Robert Bollacker and Suzanne Bollacker (nee Marose) Brown (Richard). He was raised in Dolton, IL with an older sister, Kathy (Ben) Vannest, and a younger sister, Sandra (Jeff) Kessler.

Bob often looked back upon his Dolton childhood with fondness, especially the memories with neighborhood friends—riding bikes and jumping ramps, playing Dolton Boys Baseball League at Needles Park, building two-story forts (with the optional basement), riding up to Panozzo’s for a Snickers bar and a Grape Crush on summer evenings, digging enormous holes, collecting glass bottles for spare change, hanging out at Blackstone Park, and regularly making fires in the alley from matchbooks surreptitiously collected at restaurants. Family activities were always a huge part of Bob’s life, whether it was birthday dinner parties for every aunt, uncle, cousin, grandparent, or immediate family member; both long and short family vacations; drive-in movies with homemade screens installed in the station wagon windows; turkey dinners for every Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter; road trips to Peoria or Downers Grove to spend time with cousins; spending Saturday mornings on the Canfield’s truck with his dad; watching Frazier Thomas’ ‘Family Classics’ on the console TV set with bowls of popcorn; swimming in the backyard pool; and near-daily visits from Grandma Audrey and Grandpa Les, who conveniently lived only a block away. Bobby, as he was known to the family, was a protective big brother to Sandra and often the target of Kathy’s clever pranks. Numerous stories of the three siblings’ antics have been retold within the family, always generating new laughs.

Bob is survived by his wife of 35 years, Carol (nee Koehler), who he called “the love of my life.” They met in the saxophone section of marching band at Thornridge High School and were a couple for the last 41 years. Bob and Carol are the parents of Amanda (Joseph) Ferguson, and Jessica (Tommy) Sunderhaus. As a young family of four, the Bollacker annual family vacations were spent camping their way across the United States, reaching 39 states in total, with many National Parks and factory tour visits along the way. Bob was delighted to have been a “girl dad,” and was extremely proud of the strong women Amanda and Jessica have become and overjoyed to know that each of his daughters had found her soulmate. He was eagerly awaiting his first grandchild due to arrive this June, so thrilled to be becoming Grandpa Bob, and already had so much love for his grandbaby.

Bob was also very much a son to Carol’s mom, Corinne (the late Rowe) Blissard, and a brother to her siblings Janet (Tim) Kopischke, Don (Haley) Koehler, and Martha (David) Hampton. He was honored to be an uncle and great-uncle to several nieces and nephews: Miranda Kessler, Ryan (Tracy) Kessler, Brett Kessler, Brian Kopischke, Paige Kessler, Rachel Hampton, Katie Kopischke, Jennifer Koehler, Matt Hampton, Carly Koehler, Korbyn Buck, Lillian Kessler, and Odin Kessler. As an adult, Bob treasured time with his extended family, especially on birthdays and holidays, and took great joy in hosting Christmas.

Bob was a 1985 graduate of Thornridge High School, where he studied printing in the vocational program. He was a printing pressman for 30 years following graduation, working 26 of those years at Solution 3 Graphics on the south-side of Chicago. In 2014, Bob fulfilled his long-term dream of becoming a restaurant owner alongside his wife, Carol. They purchased the Lansing Boz Hot Dogs location from his retiring parents in April of that year and purchased the Dyer, IN location in November 2016. Bob and Carol opened a third restaurant in Schererville, IN in April 2024. Bob was a daily presence as an owner-operator in the three restaurants until his Glioblastoma diagnosis in March 2025. Even after his terminal diagnosis, Bob never wanted to be too far away from the business, and was as active as possible until his death, sometimes just spending time talking to the customers.

Bob was preceded in death by his grandparents, Lester and Audrey (nee Kay) Marose, and William and Elizabeth (nee Thomas) Bollacker, as well as four men that meant a great deal to him: his uncle/godfather, James Peacock; his father-in-law, Richard “Dick” Koehler; his friend/stepfather-in-law, Rowe Blissard; and most of all his dad, Robert “Bob” Bollacker. There will be plenty of card games, like Tripoley, Hand & Foot, and Uno going on in Heaven from now on.

The terrifying brain cancer diagnosis in March 2025 allowed both Bob and Carol’s tight-knit families to reassess pragmatically, and nothing was left unsaid in the last few months. Bob’s family knew with certainty that he loved them, and he was assured of everyone’s love as well. He was a loving husband who made Carol laugh every single day; a devoted and proud father; an affectionate son; a considerate and supportive brother; a hard worker; a successful businessman; a kind and compassionate boss; a generous and sensitive soul; a sincere listener; and a charming and loveable man.

Bob did not want his life to be defined by his brain cancer diagnosis; he would call himself a Cancer Warrior before he would let the disease claim another victim. Behind every Warrior is a Support Team that never gives up, and he had an enormous village of advocates offering encouragement and prayers. A Celebratory Visitation will be held for Bob at Kish Funeral Home in Munster, IN, 10000 Calumet Ave, on Friday, March 27, 2026 from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m, and again at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, March 28, 2026 at Holy Shepherd Lutheran Church in St. John, IN with a Funeral Service following at 11:00 a.m. His family looks forward to seeing many members of Bob’s widespread Warrior Support Team to properly thank you.

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