Roger Peter Rinaldi, 69 years old, of Pleasant Prairie, WI passed away unexpectedly on Saturday, August 1, 2026.
He was born October 15, 1956, in Highland Park, IL, to the late Peter and Elaine (Fuller) Rinaldi. He graduated from East Leyden High School in 1974. Roger was a devoted husband to Desa “Lilly” Micic, who he married on August 1, 1993.
Roger was one of the hardest working men you would ever meet. He spent his younger years working in the old-fashioned printing industry, which he truly enjoyed, and then transitioned and spent close to 50 years within the automotive industry. When not working within the automotive industry, he had a passion for all things mechanical and enjoyed tinkering, assembling, and building things.Golf was another hobby that Roger enjoyed, whether it was hitting a bucket of golf balls at the driving range with his sons or playing a leisurely round at the course with Desa or friends.
Roger was a very proud patriotic American who greatly appreciated and loved his country. As his father was a Navy veteran, he never hesitated show appreciation to any veteran he encountered. He was a history and law enthusiast, and loved learning different things to add to his unmatched, massive library of unique knowledge.
However, one of Roger’s biggest passions was acts of service, as he absolutely loved being a helping hand to any person, any animal, or anything in need. Roger would, and did, give the shirt off of his back to anyone; that was just the spirit of who he was. He truly tried to serve in the name of The Lord.
Roger enjoyed nothing more than seeing the smile on someone’s face, or the laugh emanating from the belly of the people that were on the receiving end of his crazy jokes or witty one-liners, and had a larger than life presence that truly permeated any room he entered.
Any time a good song would come on, Roger never hesitated to turn the nearest flat surface into a makeshift five-piece drum set or break out his air guitar and sing along with unmatched joy. This was probably one of the many reasons he was affectionately nicknamed “Rockin’ Rog” at one of the many annual pig roasts that he would attend with friends.
Roger’s absolute joy in Life was being a devoted Papi to his six beautiful grandchildren – nothing in the world brought him more joy and happiness than when each of their little lives came into this world. He thoroughly enjoyed and cherished every precious moment he could spend with them.
Roger will also be very missed by his cat, Henry, who was his four-legged ‘partner-in-crime’. Roger cherished the days he could spend relaxing with Desa and Henry.
Survivors include his devoted and cherished wife of 33 years, Desa “Lilly”, children, Olivia (Neal) Tarnowske, Anthony (Madeleine) Fry, Nicholas Rinaldi, and Dominic (Audria) Rinaldi; grandchildren, Vincent (10), Benjamin (9), Mila (8), Julian (7), Elliot (3), and Adrian (9 months); and several nieces, nephews, and cousins.
In addition to his parents, Roger was preceded in death by his uncle, Nunzio Rinaldi, aunt, Frances Rinaldi, and brothers, Michael Rinaldi and Raymond Rinaldi.
Visitation will be held from 4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, August 5, 2026, at Proko Funeral Home. Funeral services will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, August 6, 2026, at St. Sava Serbian Orthodox Monastery, 32377 N. Milwaukee Ave., Libertyville, IL. Burial will follow in the monastery cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, Roger would ask you to please pray for the United States of America and all of our citizens, and also respect, love, be kind of one another, and don’t forget to laugh.