Krystian Kowalik, who loved dirt bikes, cologne and a straight-faced joke, dies.
Krystian Kowalik, the youngest son of Beata and Janusz Kowalik, died Oct. 8, 2026.
He was born Sept. 13, 2010, in Chicago. He was quiet and shy around others, but those who knew him well knew how funny he could be. He delivered a sarcastic joke with a straight face, and sometimes all it took was a look or a little side-eye to get everyone laughing.
At home, he teased his brothers, shared TikToks and took Snapchat pictures of everyone with ridiculous filters just to laugh at the results. He might complain about his chores, but he got them done. He often came up with something to eat and shared his leftovers.
He and his brother Damian bickered and picked on each other, played sports together, showed each other new colognes and worked together over the summer. Once, on a break at work, Damian refused to get out of the car to stretch the break. Krystian later told their dad that Damian was the reason they had been sitting there so long.
With his brother Marcin, he listened to the Crime Junkie podcast and watched comedies like “Night at the Roxbury” and “Borat.” When Marcin moved, Krystian spent a week at his apartment and lived like a king, his family wrote: he slept all day, and when Marcin got home from work, they went out to eat or cooked. When Marcin got a buzz cut, Krystian shaved his head too, leaving the two of them looking like a pair of thumbs.
Riding dirt bikes was one of his greatest passions. He rode with friends, and almost every day with Kacper. One memorable ride was a late, cold trip to Pita Falafel for chicken shawarma. He couldn’t wait to tell Damian how much his riding had improved.
He had his eye on a Toyota Supra Mark 5, then a BMW M2 with xDrive, then a pickup truck. He was still on his permit, but he was usually the first one in the car, sometimes before anyone had decided where they were going, asking to drive.
He liked looking good and smelling good. He shopped at Lululemon, Hollister and Abercrombie, wore Birkenstocks with socks and switched to UGGs when it turned cold. He collected colognes, including Jean Paul Gaultier and Yves Saint Laurent, and liked showing off each new bottle.
He loved Buffalo Wild Wings with ranch, Cane’s, chicken shawarma, Oreos, hot chips and French toast with strawberry syrup. He went out to eat with friends after the gym. Asked how that made sense, he said it all evened out. He also enjoyed traveling, fishing and sleeping whenever he could.
In the summer of 2026, he had his first job and found he liked earning his own money. He had talked about becoming a pilot.
He was proud to be Polish and was Catholic. He listened to Baciary and house music, and if friends played something he didn’t like in the car, he told them to turn it off and put on Baciary.
He is survived by his parents, Beata and Janusz Kowalik; his brothers, Marcin and Damian; his extended family; and his friends.
Visitation: Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026, 3 to 7 p.m. at Damar-Kaminski Funeral Home & Crematorium, 7861 S. 88th Ave., Justice, Illinois.
Funeral: Monday, Oct. 12, 2026. Prayers and procession begin at 10:15 a.m. from the funeral home to Sacred Heart Church, 8245 W. 111th St., Palos Hills, Illinois, for 11:30 a.m. Mass.
Interment: Resurrection Cemetery, Justice, Illinois.