James A Toya, age 81, of Glen Ellyn, passed away peacefully into the arms of Jesus, on September 27th.
Jim, beloved husband to Marina Toya, and a compassionate father to John J Toya, Tom A Toya and daughter in-law Lou Batalla Toya. He is survived by his sister Eve Knez, brother George Toyas and his “granddog” Muy-Muy.
Jim was born in Long Beach NY. He is the son of Thomas & Athena Toyas, who emigrated from Greece. He was a Captain in the US Army, Received the Dean’s medal at Pratt Institute and holds a Master’s of Architecture from the University of Illinois. He had a decorated career with his largest contributions made at Perkins & Will Architects, where he designed and managed large-scale projects all over the US, in the Middle East and Europe. His second career was as a Building code official at the Village of Wilmette, where he was greatly respected & loved.
Jim was a quietly accomplished man; fluent in French and played a mandolin of his own making. He loved to dance, sculpt, paint, fix, garden, tinker and fish. He was quiet, kind to a fault, humble, faithful and generous. He will be greatly missed.
Visitation: Friday October 4th 4PM – 8PM at Leonard’s Memorial Funeral Home – 565 Duane St. Glen Ellyn, IL
Funeral: Saturday October 5th 10:30AM also at Leonard’s Memorial Funeral home, with procession to Chapel Hill Cemetery - 300 E 22nd Street Lombard, IL. Please follow us to Greek Islands Restaurant in Lombard to gather.
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