Silvestre B. Banawa Jr.

On Sunday, May 7, 2023, Silvestre “Jun” B. Banawa Jr., beloved father, grandfather and
brother, passed away at the age of 79, surrounded by family and friends.
Jun was born on March 30, 1944 in San Pablo, Philippines, to Dr. Silvestre Medina Banawa Sr.
and Caridad Gutierrez Brion. He was the eldest of their six children. He loved to recount stories
from his childhood in the Philippines. He received his Bachelor of Science in agriculture from
The University of the Philippines. He moved to Chicago, Illinois in 1967. There he met the love
of his life, Lilia Mapili, and they married on June 18, 1977. They settled in Oak Park, Illinois and
it was there that they raised their four children.
Jun eventually took a leap of faith and started his own Filipino pastry business specializing in a
delicacy called hopia. He and his wife named the company Four Stars after their children. Jun
could often be found, in the kitchen, making hopia by hand into the early hours of the morning.
Just one of the many ways he instilled the values of hard work and perseverance into his
children. He had a love of music and adventure; his children are blessed to have so many
memories of family vacations painstakingly planned by him and AAA. He would light up at the
sight of his grandchildren and loved sitting down for a good meal with friends and family.
Jun was preceded in death by his father, his mother and his wife Lilia. He is survived by his
children, Lisa (Josh) Peiffer, Melanie (James) Pua, Leah (Dean) Mangano and Mark (Kayla
Kutilek) and eight grandchildren (Livia, Isabel, Owen, Lilie, Silvea, Lukas, Charlie and Maxine).
He is also survived by his siblings: Emmanuel, Maria Aurora, Vicente Teodoro, Maria Josefa
and Araceli Brigada, as well as extended family.
A visitation will be held at Salerno’s Rosedale Chapel on Friday, June 23, 2023 from 3 pm – 9
pm.
A funeral service will be held at 10 AM on Saturday, June 24, 2023 at St. Theresa’s Catholic
Church in Palatine, IL. The burial will immediately follow at Queen of Heaven Catholic
Cemetery, where he will be laid next to his wife. The family would like to welcome all to the
services.