StoryCorps Chicago: Judge Joan Lefkow Tells Daughter: ‘After The Grief, I Felt Amazed About How Resilient People Are’

Maria Sorensen interviewed her mom, Joan Lefkow, at the StoryCorps booth in Chicago
Maria Sorensen interviewed her mother, Joan Lefkow, at the StoryCorps booth in Chicago Courtesy of Maria Lefkow Sorensen
Maria Sorensen interviewed her mom, Joan Lefkow, at the StoryCorps booth in Chicago
Maria Sorensen interviewed her mother, Joan Lefkow, at the StoryCorps booth in Chicago Courtesy of Maria Lefkow Sorensen

StoryCorps Chicago: Judge Joan Lefkow Tells Daughter: ‘After The Grief, I Felt Amazed About How Resilient People Are’

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Five years into her job as federal judge for the Northern District of Illinois, Joan Lefkow came home from work to find her husband and her 89-year-old mother shot to death.

A man who had once appeared before her in court confessed to the murders in a suicide note found months later. He also took his own life.

Last week, Judge Lefkow visited the StoryCorps booth with her daughter, Maria Sorensen.

It was a birthday gift for Sorensen, to be able to sit down and talk to her mom about their family’s journey.

StoryCorps’ mission is to provide Americans of all backgrounds and beliefs with the opportunity to share, record and preserve their stories. These excerpts, edited by WBEZ, present some of our favorites from the current visit, as well as from previous trips.