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Brian Volkman's Friends Make Good on a Promise With Upcoming Benefit

 Brian Volkman, pictured with his daughters, Maggie, 3, and CeCe, 1, died on Sept. 7. Also pictured on the beach in Michigan, Volkman was diagnosed with lung cancer and died six months later.
Brian Volkman, pictured with his daughters, Maggie, 3, and CeCe, 1, died on Sept. 7. Also pictured on the beach in Michigan, Volkman was diagnosed with lung cancer and died six months later.
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BEVERLY — Like many South Siders, many of the best stories about the late Brian Volkman aren't fit for print, according to his buddies.

Then again, there was the time Volkman's cat climbed into the ventilation ducts in his Old Town apartment and destroyed a neighbor's couch. Or the time he arrived in Milwaukee wearing a cow costume with rubber udders to visit friends at Marquette University.

These stories and more lurid tales will fill the air at the Volkman Foundation Benefit from 3-8 p.m. May 30 at 115 Bourbon Street, 3359 W. 115th St. in suburban Merrionette Park.

The benefit will raise money to offset Volkman's outstanding medical bills and pay for the future educational expenses of his two daughters, Maggie, 3, and CeCe, 1.

Volkman, 40, died after a six-month battle with lung cancer on Sept. 7. In addition to his children, Volkman left behind his wife, Liz (Chomicz) and hundreds of friends whom he made along the shortened path of his life.

"His friendships with people only grew. He didn't leave people behind," said Steve Urbon, Volkman's friend since the pair played tee ball together at age 5.

Howard Ludwig says it was a shocking diagnosis:

Urbon and Volkman attended St. John Fisher Elementary School in Beverly along with Brian Cotter. The trio planned to raise their children together, hoping their kids would become friends just as they did.

In the final days of his life, Volkman realized that might not happen. He made Urbon, Cotter and others promise to continue to include his wife and daughters in all their backyard barbecues, First Communion parties and other family events after his death.

He then asked them to "take care of my girls," Urbon said.

This final vow is the motivation Volkman's closest friends have used to organize the one-time fundraiser that's expected to draw some 2,000 people. The coordinators hope to raise $200,000.

"We have to fulfill a promise we made to Brian," Cotter said. "He would have done it for us."

It costs $35 to attend the benefit, which includes beer and food. Raffle prizes and auction items are also expected to drive up the fundraising total. A some of the items sure to attract attention include Grateful Dead tickets, a trip to the "Ellen" show, Mike Tyson autographed boxing gloves and more.

Volkman was living in suburban Brookfield at the time of his death, but his roots remained firmly planted in Beverly. Nearly all of his childhood friends hailed from the Southwest Side.

As an 8-year-old boy, Volkman met his wife when she was student at St. Barnabas School. The pair later reunited and were married — another example of Volkman's ties to the 19th Ward.

But Volkman made strong friendships everywhere he went including Marist High School, the University of Illinois at Chicago, John Marshall Law School, the Chicago Board of Trade, the Cook County State's Attorney's Office and elsewhere.

It's because of Volkman's many friendships that Urbon, Cotter and other organizers are expecting such a large crowd on May 30.

"The thing about this neighborhood is everyone takes care of each other," said Urbon, a resident of Morgan Park.

In addition to his friends, Volkman also loved to travel. He loved the Chicago White Sox and the Bears. He hosted some of the best parties and was fond of South Side junk food — pizza puffs in particular, Urbon and Cotter said.

Volkman, a non-smoker, found pleasure in ribbing his friends and was a fantasy football fanatic. He liked all of the "Rocky" movies and thus adopted a boxing theme during his battle with lung cancer.

But in the end, it was his friends and family that were the focus of his attention. Volkman even did his best to let his closest companions known that their lives needed to move forward after his passing.

"When he was dying, he was concerned about us — not himself," Cotter said.

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