Julia Dorothy Strain, 98, passed away peacefully, surrounded by her children and grandchildren, on Aug. 3, 2026.
Beloved wife of the late Clifford Strain. Loving mother of Carol (Ted Millin) Strain, Cliff (Laurie) Strain, Gary (the late Helen) (Carol) Strain, Linda Strain (Carter Hunnicutt) and Nancy (Jimmy) Hensley. 12 grandchildren, Kyle Millin, Colin Millin, Kay Strain, Maggie (John) Bowles, Scott Strain, Matthew Golan, Jason (Gokcen) Flannery, Justin Flannery, Bryan (Allison) Flannery, Shannon (fiancé Danny Feuling) Flannery, Sydney Kopp and Ethan Kopp. Great Grandma to Maya Golan.
Julia now joins her parents, Nunzio and Gaetana Catania, and her eight siblings, Bessie, Mary, Nancy, Anna, Josephine, Tony, Nicky and Joe, in Heaven.
To her family, she was the center of the universe—a beloved mother and grandmother who cherished spending time with her kids and grandkids. As a first-generation American born to Sicilian parents, one of the ways she showed her love was through cooking her iconic dishes, including cutlets, stroganoff, spaghetti and lasagna, that would make you want to take several plates, even if you “weren’t hungry.”
She was a longtime Lombardian, though she grew up on Staten Island. To her community, she was a devout parishioner at St. Pius X Catholic Church, where she taught religious education, volunteered and visited homebound parishioners. She will be remembered for her kindness, feistiness, resiliency, and deep commitment to those she loved.
A Visitation was held from 4 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 5, at Brust Funeral Home, located at 135 S. Main St., Lombard, IL 60148. Funeral Prayers were held on Thursday, Aug. 6, at Brust Funeral Home. A Funeral Mass was held at 10 a.m. on Aug. 6 at St. Pius X Catholic Church, located at 1025 E Madison St, Lombard, IL 60148. Interment at Assumption Catholic Cemetery, located at 1S150 Winfield Road, Wheaton, IL 60189, followed.
