Page 31 - November 2018

One of the entries on that rap sheet shows Ogonowski pinching Pops for stealing typewriters in a bust near Grand Avenue that led to finding a garage full of stolen furs. He had found the action and the opportunity to protect and defend that he always craved, working in one of the Department’s premium units back in the ‘50s and ‘60s.
“I loved vice,” Edwin effuses. “The mafia boys, they all knew me.”
In the 1960s, Ogonowski met fellow coppers John Dineen and Bill Nolan when they were getting Chicago Lodge 7 go- ing. “They were sharp guys,” he says, adding that officers quickly recognized how important the support of the union would become.
He maintains his loyalty to the Lodge, proudly showing his membership card with the “Greg Bella” authorized sig- nature and attending the retired members breakfast the first Wednesday of the month at Lone Tree Manor in Niles, not far from the Glen Saint Andrew assisted living facility where now makes his home.
Or at least he used to attend. Ogonowski gave up driving about three years ago and doesn’t like to ask for rides. “I hate to have people do things for me,” he whispers. So Edwin hasn’t made it to the breakfasts as often as he would like.
He retired in 1989, the wear and tear of the job leaving him needing hip and knee replacements. He enjoyed life with his beloved Mary, who passed away four months before their 50th wedding anniversary. His family includes 70-year-old daughter Edwina, who lives in Tennessee, and 68-year-old daughter Marilynn, who lives in Burr Ridge.
And there are, of course, grandchildren, but you would never get the impression Edwin is old. When visitors come,
Ogonowski with his Chicago Police star.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 32
CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ NOVEMBER 2017 31