Paul Frederick Regnier

Paul Frederick Regnier

May 18, 1951 —November 3, 2023

Paul Frederick Regnier age 72, of Crystal Lake, Illinois passed away at JourneyCare Barrington on November 3, 2023 with his loving family at his side. He was born in Aurora, Illinois on May 18, 1951, the first of two sons born to Kathryn Rose Duffy and John Donald Regnier. The family of four lived in Batavia, IL during Paul’s early childhood and moved to Aurora, IL where Paul entered kindergarten. Paul’s childhood was full of the love and support provided by his parents and grandparents.  With many relatives living nearby, holidays and birthdays were always marked by celebrations that included grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. Paul graduated from St. Therese grade school and spent his first two years of high school at Roncalli Catholic High School.  He graduated from East Aurora High School in 1970.  Paul attended Waubonsee Community College before taking a job as a cook at “The Elms” in Batavia.  Paul was a chef at heart.  Throughout his life, Paul loved to cook and was quick to adopt the latest kitchen gadgets.  Had Paul come of age today, with its many culinary training opportunities, he likely would have made a career in the restaurant industry.  As it happened, however, Paul changed jobs in 1971 and took a position in the stockroom of Furnas Electric in Batavia. Paul married Rebecca Kroning on June 25, 1983 and in 1985 they welcomed their daughter, Elizabeth Kathryn, into the world.  Paul embraced his role as a father and even took a second job for a few years to better provide for his family. At Furnas, Paul moved from the stockroom into an assembly job wiring electrical control panels. Paul’s attention to detail and focus on quality was later rewarded with a promotion to the position of inspector. Paul took great pride in the quality and reliability of the products his department produced.  When the company established an Employee Participation and Customer Satisfaction (EPICS) project, Paul was appointed to lead a team that, among other projects, performed a process re-design to improve his department’s efficiency.  Paul’s participation in EPICS included making presentations about various improvement projects to the company’s president and board of directors. Paul’s leadership also included terms as president of the company’s blood bank and the Quarter Century Club.  In the latter capacity, he was applauded for arranging great entertainment for the annual dinners honoring employees with 25-plus years of service. On one memorable occasion, Paul was invited to fly on the company’s private six-passenger jet to visit a sister plant in Iowa. Paul could not have asked for a better recognition of his work.  He was fascinated by airplanes from an early age, and his seat on this flight was directly behind the pilot. In 1996, Furnas merged with the Siemens Corporation and it was from that German corporation that Paul retired in April of 2018 after a 37-year career. It was by no means an easy career.  The commute to Batavia, and later to West Chicago, was hard, especially during the dark and snowy winter months.  And his job required that Paul be on his feet for hours which was especially difficult during the hot and humid summers. For relaxation, Paul enjoyed family trips to Wisconsin and Florida; playing with pet cats and dogs, cooking; and watching sports and movies on television. He especially enjoyed classic movies and mysteries. Paul was a salt of the earth, no-frills kind of guy.  He was a man of good character: honest; friendly; good humored; and generally optimistic despite numerous health challenges.  He was devoted to his family and very proud of his daughter, Elizabeth.  And in recent years, Paul delighted in being Grandpa to Sienna and Mackenzie.  Paul will be dearly missed. Paul was preceded in death by his parents, Kathryn Rose and John Donald Regnier.  He is survived by beloved his wife Rebecca "Becky" Regnier; his loving daughter, Elizabeth (Nathan) Principato his cherished granddaughters, Sienna and Mackenzie Principato; his dear brother, David (Marcia) Regnier, and numerous in-laws, cousins, nieces and nephews. The family would like to thank the many professionals at Condell Hospital in Libertyville and JourneyCare Hospice in Barrington, Illinois who were so caring and kind to Paul in his final weeks. A visitation for Paul will be held on Friday, November 10, 2023 from 10:00 AM until time of a 1:00 PM chapel service at Willow Funeral Home 1415 W. Algonquin Rd., (one mile east of Randall Rd.) Algonquin/Lake in the Hills. Interment Algonquin Cemetery.

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