Obit of F. Mardelle (Wilder) Lawless

CHATSWORTH — F. Mardelle Lawless, 86, Chatsworth, died at 3:06 p.m. Wednesday (Jan. 25, 2012) at her residence in Chatsworth.

Service: Cremation rites have been accorded.

Burial: family graveside inurnment at a later date in Chenoa Cemetery, Chenoa. Duffy-Pils Memorial Home, Fairbury, is in charge of arrangements.

Mardelle was born February 2, 1925 in Chenoa the daughter of William and Carrie Parsons Wilder. She married John "Jack" Lawless on February 14, 1953. Her parents, her husband and one son, Patrick Lawless preceded her in death.

Survivors: four sisters, Betty Blackmore, Flanagan; JoAnn (Charles) Finnell, Tulsa, Okla.; Janet (James) Kiley, Bloomington; and Shirley (Ron) Corrie, Chenoa; and one granddaughter.

A guest book and online condolences may be directed to the family at www.duffypilsmemorialhome.com

Obit of Robert L. Donovan

MORTON — Robert L. Donovan, 91, Morton, died at 8:54 p.m. Saturday (Jan. 21, 2012).

A funeral Mass will be at 11 a.m. Friday at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church, Morton, with the Rev. Mark DeSutter officiating. Visitation will be from 10 to 10:45 a.m. Friday at the church. Cremation will be accorded following the Mass. Burial of the cremated remains will be in St. Patrick’s Catholic Cemetery, Chatsworth, at a later date.

Knapp-Johnson Funeral Home and Cremation Center, Morton, is handling arrangements.

Memorials may be made to Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church, 225 E. Greenwood St., Morton, IL 61550.

He was born July 24, 1920, in Peoria, son of Robert L. and Opal Miller Donovan. He married Mary H. Hubly on June 28, 1947, in Chatsworth. She preceded him in death on Jan. 6, 2009.

Surviving are two sons, Daniel (Gay) Donovan, Peoria, and Mark (Angela) Donovan, Rathdrum, Idaho; two daughters, Teresa Cornetta, San Diego, Calif., and Jane (Gary) Rush, Newbury Park, Calif.; 11 grandchildren; one stepgrandchild; and one half sister, Martha (Dr. James) Mullen, San Diego.

He was a World War II Army Air Forces veteran, where he served as a fighter pilot.

Robert worked in management at Caterpillar Inc. in material control at the East Peoria plant for 41 years, retiring in 1982.

He was a member of Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church in Morton and the Caterpillar Retirees Club in East Peoria.

Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.knappjohnson.com.

Obit of John E. Fairley

John E. Fairley, 62, of Peoria, passed away at 10:45 pm on Wednesday, January 18, 2012 at his home in Peoria.
He was born on May 25, 1949 in Fairbury, IL to Leonard and Mildred (Sharp) Fairley. He married Sally Pogioli on March 8, 1973 in Normal, IL. He was preceded in death by his parents and one brother, Roger.
Surviving is his wife, Sally of Peoria, two children, Kathryn (Binod) Pandey of Memphis, TN and Nicholas Fairley of Peoria. Also surviving is one sister, Bonnie (Ken) Eastin of Roberts, IL, one brother, Jerry (Laurel) Fairley of Pontiac, IL and his sister-in-law Ellen Fairley-Smith of Cleveland, TN.
John served in the U.S. Navy during the Vietnam War from 1968 to 1970 and he graduated from U.I.S with a Bachelor's Degree in Criminal Justice. John worked as a Route Salesman for Sunbeam for many years and then worked as a Medical Office Assistant with the Veteran's Administration for nearly two years before falling ill. He was a member of St. Philomena's Catholic Church, the church Men's Club and the East Peoria VFW, Post #2078. John also loved Blues music and he enjoyed trap shooting.
A visitation will be held on Friday, January 20, 2012 from 4:30 pm to 7:00pm at Davison-Fulton-Woolsey-Wilton Funeral Home in Peoria. A funeral mass will be held on Saturday, January 21, 2012 at 12:30 pm at St. Philomena's Catholic Church with visitation half an hour prior to service. Father David Richardson will officiate. Entombment will follow the service at Resurrection Mausoleum in Peoria.
Memorials may be made to the Disabled American Veterans. Please visit John's Story at www.woolsey-wilton.com. 

Link to website of Chatsworth Illinois Memories

Thank you for visiting "Chatsworth Illinois Memories" blog. You are only finding the updates to my original site here. To fully search through Chatsworth history, visit my site "Chatsworth Illinois Memories" and I hope you find what you are looking for.
Site Manager
Blog Manager
Mary Runyon Hanshew

Obit of L. Fred Hornstein

L. Fred Hornstein, 75 of rural Urbana, IL, formerly of Chatsworth, died on January 10, 2012 at 8:05 AM at his residence.

Funeral Services will be held on Saturday, January 14, 2012 at 11:00 AM at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Chatsworth, with Rev. Phillip Callahan of the Peace Lutheran Church officiating. Visitation will be held from 10:00 AM until the hour of service, Saturday at the church. Burial will be held at the Chatsworth Cemetery. Calvert & Martin Funeral Home in Chatsworth is handling the arrangements. Memorials in Fred’s name may be left to St. Paul Lutheran Church in Chatsworth or the Peace Lutheran Church in Thomasboro.
Fred was born on July 26, 1936 in Piper City, IL a son of Fred E. and Minnie (Grosenbach) Hornstein. He is survived by two sisters: Mildred Propes of Piper City, IL and Lucy Haberkorn of Chatsworth, IL; one sister-in-law: Janet Hornstein of Piper City; one brother-in-law: Darrell Beehn of Bloomington, IL and his companion: Nancy Moyer of rural Urbana, IL. He was preceded in death by one son: Danny Hornstein; two sisters and one brother.
Fred graduated from Chatsworth High School. He had worked for American Screen in Chatsworth. He owned and operated Shell Service and Bulk Plant in Chatsworth. He had worked at the Pontiac Correctional Center for over 21 years and after retiring her drove for Ryder Trucking and J.R. Schugel in Urbana. He was a member of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Chatsworth and most recently attended Peace Lutheran Church in Thomasboro, IL. 

Obit of Ella (Thorndyke) Brown

Ella (Thorndyke) Brown

Ella L. Brown, 83, Fairbury, died at 10:50 am Monday, January 2, 2012 at OSF St. James-John Albrecht Medical Center, Pontiac.

Funeral services will be held at 10:30 am Friday, January 6, 2012 at the United Methodist Church, Forrest with the Rev. David Reynolds officiating. Burial will be in Pleasant Ridge Twp. Cemetery, rural Wing.

Visitation will be 4:00 to 8:00 pm Thursday at Duffy-Pils Memorial Home, Fairbury. The family suggests memorials be given to the United Methodist Church, Forrest or to the charity of the donor’s choice.

Mrs. Brown was born January 19, 1928 in Chatsworth the daughter of John and Hilda Frieden Thorndyke. She married Allan P. Brown on April 30, 1950. He survives in Fairbury.

Other survivors include her children: Gary (Jane) Brown, Saunemin, Donna (Carl) Anderson, Bloomington, Carol (Eric) Krag, Greencastle, IN, Sue (Dale) Rolando, Orlando, FL, Wayne (Sue) Brown, Gibson City, Paul (Linda) Brown, Petersburg, two sisters, Phyllis Bunting, Fairbury, Wanda (Lowell) Johnson, Manhattan, KS, fourteen grandchildren and eighteen great grandchildren.

Mrs. Brown was a 1946 graduate of Saunemin High School and was a homemaker who farmed with her husband for many years.

Obit of Esther (Shell) Berry

Esther (Shell) Berry

Fairbury – Esther Marie Berry , 90, of Fairbury passed away at 9:02 am on January 5, 2012 at Fairview Haven Nursing Home, Fairbury.

Her funeral will be held at 10:00am on Tuesday, January 10, 2012, at McDowell United Methodist Church. Pastor Donna Baker will be officiating. Burial will be in Avoca Township Cemetery.

Visitation will be held from 4-7:00pm on Monday, January 9, 2012, at Duffy-Pils Memorial Home, Fairbury and one hour prior to services on Tuesday at the church.

Memorials may be made to McDowell United Methodist Church, Fairview Haven Nursing Home, or OSF Hospice.

Esther was born February 10, 1921, in Chatsworth the daughter of Adam and Bessie Mae Eaker Shell.

She married James Graydon Berry on April 19, 1944, in Chatsworth. He died October 2, 1996.

Surviving are two sons James R. (Kay) Berry of Lexington and Michael G. (Cinda) Berry Rochester; two daughters, Denise K. (Alan) Haberkorn of St. Charles, MO and Renee M. (David) Enderli of Pontiac; 11 grandchildren; 25 great-grandchildren + 3 on the way; three sisters, Helen Babcock of Washington, Agnes Wilkins of Bradley, and Margaret Herink of Canton.

Her parents, two brothers and two sisters preceded her in death.

Esther was a member of McDowell United Methodist Church.

She worked in a war factory in Rome, NY in 1944 while her husband was stationed there. She worked on the line making water jackets for machine guns.

Esther was a loving mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. She loved to garden, sew and quilt. She made quilts for all of her children and grandchildren. Esther was known for her great cooking, especially her pies. She had a love for animals and was loved by all.