In Memoriam
John Hugh Rooney Jr. ’49 of Sycamore, Illinois, died on July 21, 2021, at the age of 90. Born on February 18, 1931, in Dedham, he was the son of Eileen Flaherty and John Rooney. During his adolescent years, John lived on Spruce Street and attended the Ames Junior High School in Dedham prior to his admission to Roxbury Latin. While a student at RL, John participated in a host of activities. He played football,
64
Fa l l 2 0 2 1
ran track, and participated on the debate team. He also served on the student council and helped with Tripod. John’s classmates named him “Class Spirit” in the 1949 Yearbook. His peers praised his “fine scholarship and laudable athletic record.” They added that he was “conscientious and full of enormous spirit and vitality” during his time at Roxbury Latin. In his college letter, Headmaster Weed described John as “a good citizen who stands for all the right things, and courageously stands against what he considers wrong… the sum total of his merits make a boy whom we highly recommend, and with real pleasure in doing so.” John matriculated at Harvard College, where he began his studies as a math concentrator before switching to English. He earned his AB in 1953. At Harvard, John also began his studies in art with Hyman Bloom, who made a significant impression on him. After graduating, John served in the U.S. Army and was stationed in Europe where he performed with the U.S. Army Choir. In 1956, John enrolled
at the Akademie der Bildenden Kunste (Academy of Visual Arts) in Munich, Germany. It was at the Akademie that he met Ursula (Ulli) Gruenberg, whom he married in Munich, Germany, in 1957. Ursula earned her final diploma in 1961, and John earned his in 1962. He later earned an MFA from Syracuse University in 1967. In 1968, the Rooneys moved to DeKalb, Illinois, where John began teaching painting and drawing at Northern Illinois University. He enjoyed traveling and spent one of his sabbaticals painting and teaching in Salzburg, Austria, with his young family. His family noted that he was fluent in German, but he also conversed ably in French, Italian, Greek, and even Latin when the occasion arose. John served on the faculty at Northern Illinois University as a professor of art from 1968 until his retirement in 1996. John continued to paint and draw after his retirement, often with a group of retired colleagues. He was a devoted supporter
