Benevolent Biker Fondly Remembered by Companions

He preferred “Rocky” to James and Hogs to Hondas. 

James “Rocky” Siciliano, 52, of Mokena, was described as a benevolent man whose passion for motorcycles was matched only by that of his passion for charity.

He died on Saturday , three-quarter miles east of Baseline Road in Jackson Township.

“It's obvious he meant a lot,” Steve Werner, a friend of many decades, said at his wake on Wednesday. “Look around.”

The line of visitors stretched from one end of the building to another at the Sheehy Funeral Home in Orland Park. Folks wearing purple hair, thick beards, braided goatees, piercings, Mohawks, leather and tattoos hugged, laughed and cried. Some of them made the trek from Florida. A group of Hells Angels carved their own corner of the parking lot, which steadily became a massive smoking lounge. 

On a table next to the casket, Rocky could be seen mooning the camera. On another he was giving the finger. And everywhere in between he was smiling, looking most relaxed and meditative while working on his bike.

“He'll be missed by his real family and his motorcycle family,” Werner said.

There were few local charities, veterans’ organizations and food pantries that apparently Rocky, a commercial painter by trade, didn’t ride for. His last, which he didn't finish, was to help raise money for a group researching Lou Gehrig’s disease called Ride for Life.

“He went out the way he wanted to go out,” Werner said. Hugging a teary-eyed companion, he added, “It's like a nightmare you can't wake up from."

Based on eyewitness testimony, Will County investigators believe Rocky accidentally struck one of the other riders from behind, which resulted in the triple motorcycle crash, Sheriff's spokeswoman Kathy Hoffmeyer said.

He was pronounced dead on the scene at 4:42 p.m. on Saturday, June 4. An autopsy was conducted two days later—the results of which will not be made public for several weeks, pending the completion of toxicology reports, according to the Will County Coroner’s Office.

The other two riders in the crash—a 32-year-old man from Bradley and a 34-year-old man from Bourbonnais—refused medical treatment, Hoffmeyer said. The police report does not say whether Rocky was wearing a helmet at the time.

“He was balls to the walls,” Mike Ellul, a friend and housemate, said. “Worst part is I got no one to yell at now.”

If Rocky jested with the boys, he must have been angelic with the girls. Julie Ellul, Mike’s wife, recalled the way that Rocky used to call her “'Julie bean'” and would say, “‘Who loves ya? Rocky, Jesus and mama.’”

For almost two decades, Rocky rode in the annual Chicagoland Toys for Tots motorcycle parade. The group’s board of directors visited Orland Park on Wednesday to pay their respects. They said they were honored to attend, but saddened by the frequency of motorcycle fatalities.

“Unfortunately,” board treasurer Janet Malpede said, “we go to these too often.”