Her wake was Sunday night; the funeral is Monday morning.
The funeral Mass is set to begin following a procession from the Chicago Cultural Center.
The Daley family has always been in the public spotlight, and they expected that reality even in their time of grief. They posed Sunday for a photo in front of the closed casket of their beloved Maggie. The visitation at the cultural center drew people. Everyday Chicagoans were there, along with family friends and politicians.
"It is very much a celebration of her life. The ceremony is very upbeat, and you know, I think the family is well served by the presentation that they have," said family friend Robert Abboud.
"You just never saw her without a smile on her face, and as I said, Rich may have had his friends and enemies, but Maggie was all friends," said U. S. Sen. Dick Durbin, (D) Ill.
Maggie's love of the arts was represented by the choirs and musicians from the After School Matters program she created. Many of the mourners were graduates.
"There is nobody that has done more nationally as an example for children and for the arts. I mean, her program, they talk about it every place you go around the country, and it was her heart," said Father Michael Pfleger, St. Sabina Catholic Church.
Everyone from ordinary people to dignitaries is expected to attend the funeral Mass, which will begin at 10:30 a.m. Officials say it doesn't appear as though President Barack Obama will be in attendance. He has activities surrounding issues with the European Union, but because the Federal Aviation Administration has confirmed that there are airspace restrictions beginning around 8 a.m., there is speculation that there is a possibility that first lady Michelle Obama may be in attendance.
Education Secretary Arne Duncan and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood are expected to attend the funeral Monday. The Mass will be held at Old St. Patrick's Catholic Church on the Near West Side.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the program that Mrs. Daley founded, After School Matters, or to Northwestern University's Maggie Daley Cancer Center. The funeral procession will go from the cultural center, past City Hall, to St. Pat's.
