Paul Edward Dinquel

Paul Edward Dinquel, 63, of Villa Park, IL, passed away unexpectedly at his home on April 13, 2025. Paul was born on October 20, 1961, at the Great Lakes Naval Station in North Chicago to Jack and Mary (nee English) Dinquel.

Paul was a Navy brat who moved around the United States often as a child while his dad served a long military career. After his father’s retirement from the Navy, the family settled in Pekin, IL, where Paul graduated from Pekin Community High School in 1979. He then attended Eastern Illinois University (EIU), where he met Elaine Koncar, with whom he would later marry and raise three children. Paul and Elaine were looking forward to celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary on May 4th. After earning a degree in accounting at EIU and passing the CPA exam on his first try, Paul went on to earn a master’s degree from DePaul University and spent over 30 years with Great Lakes Dredge and Dock in the accounting department, traveling often for work both domestically and abroad.

Paul enjoyed spending time with his family, taking road trips together, visiting the zoo, attending Chicago sports games, concerts, and his children’s extracurricular events while they were growing up. He loved music, both listening and creating. He was a very talented guitar player and singer and started writing a catalog of his own songs as a teenager. He was happy to perform a song at his twin sister’s wedding in 1987 and sometimes shared his songs online for others to enjoy. His debut album, Tragically Naive, is available for listen on YouTube.

Paul’s family will cherish the times they spent playing backyard games together, taking walks in nature, and just spending time with him. Paul was proud to volunteer for the last eight years at the Morton Arboretum where he helped provide a window into the beauty of nature. Paul had many animals throughout his lifetime, often not by choice. He was especially fond of his cats, and his current feline companion, Moose, will surely miss him. He enjoyed feeding and sharing videos of the friendly neighborhood critters in his own backyard, including squirrels, rabbits, birds, and chipmunks. Many in his family will miss receiving those precious narrated videos.

Paul was preceded in death by his parents, Jack and Mary Dinquel. He is survived by his wife of 39 years, Elaine; his daughters, Julie Dinquel of Hoffman Estates and Lisa (Larry) Alcaraz of Plainfield, and his son Jeffery Dinquel of Joliet; his brothers John (Barb) Dinquel of Moline and James (Lori) Dinquel of Pekin, sister Rita Desollar of Pekin and his twin sister Elise (Fred) Zwicky of Urbana. He also is survived by many nieces and nephews.

A Celebration of Life Memorial Gathering will be held on Tuesday, April 22, 2025, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Tezak’s Home to Celebrate Life, 1211 Plainfield Road, Joliet, IL 60435. Cremation rites have been accorded, and an inurnment will take place privately by the family at St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Paul’s name to the Morton Arboretum are appreciated and can be submitted online.