William Eimer          Send a link to a friend

BLOOMINGTON -- William C. Eimer, 80, of Bloomington, formerly of Lincoln, died Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2005, at 11:45 p.m. at OSF St. Joseph Medical Center in Bloomington.

A graveside service will be at 11 a.m. Saturday at St. Mary's Cemetery in Lincoln, with Bill Degen officiating.

Mr. Eimer was a greeter at the Wal-Mart store in Bloomington for the past 15 years. He had farmed east of Lincoln from 1947 until 1967. He then worked for Mel Wiggers Oldsmobile in Lincoln and Sam Leman auto sales for 11 years.

Peasley Funeral Home of Lincoln is in charge of arrangements.

He was born Aug. 28, 1925, in Lincoln to William C. and Leona G. Boughan Eimer. He married Mary M. Herberger on July 19, 1947, at St. Mary's Church in Lincoln.

He is survived by his wife, of Bloomington; two sons, James Eimer of Bloomington and Michael (and Catrina) Eimer of Clinton; one sister, Loretta Hickey of Springfield; nine grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren.

He attended St. Mary's Catholic Church in Bloomington and was a former member of St. Mary's Catholic Church in Lincoln.

Memorials may be made to the American Cancer Society.

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Ruth Pharis

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LINCOLN -- Ruth J. Pharis, 82, of Lincoln died Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2005, at 3:43 p.m. at Memorial Medical Center in Springfield.

Visitation will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Friday at Fricke-Calvert-Schrader Funeral Home in Lincoln.

Her funeral will be at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at Zion Lutheran Church in Lincoln, with the Rev. Mark Carnahan officiating.

Burial will be in Zion Cemetery.

Mrs. Pharis retired as bookkeeper for the Spurgeon's store in Lincoln in 1988.

She was born Dec. 20, 1922, at Altamont to Rudolph and Edith Miller Beccue. She married Joyce Pharis on Aug. 15, 1941, in Athens. He died March 7, 1974.

She is survived by one son, Robert (and Jerrie) Pharis of Lincoln; one daughter, Judy Pharis of Cornell; two brothers, Wilbert (and Ruth) Beccue of Greenup and Paul (and Marian) Beccue of Scaly Mountain, N.C.; two sisters, Florence (and Harold) Keith of Mason City and Harriett (and Jim) Abeln of Athens; three grandchildren, Mark Pharis of New Holland, Pam Pharis of Charleston and Cindy (and Bob) Guy of Springfield; and two great-grandchildren, Taylor Guy and Robert Guy IV.

She was also preceded in death by one brother and one sister.

She was a member of Zion Lutheran Church of Lincoln and the church's missionary society, Home Extension, and was a former member of the American Business Women's Association, Lincoln Heritage Charter Chapter.

Memorials may be made to Zion Lutheran Church or Zion Lutheran School of Lincoln.

Dana Last

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HARTSBURG -- Dana Martin Last, 72, of Hartsburg died Monday, Oct. 17, 2005, at home with his family.

Visitation will be from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday at Bennett Funeral Home in Lincoln.

His funeral will be at 10 a.m. Friday at Prairieland Christian Church in Hartsburg, with Vance Russell officiating.

Burial will be in Hartsburg Union Cemetery.

Mr. Last worked in construction, including the Pekin Mall and the Peoria Caterpillar office building. He was most proud of being the last man down after the completion of the smokestack for the Pekin power plant. Later, he formed his own construction business. Before his retirement he specialized in applying liquid rubber roofing. He had begun working in union construction in 1956 and had been employed at the bottle factory in Lincoln for 12 years before that. He had left school in the seventh grade in order to work full time and take care of his brother.

He enlisted in the Illinois National Guard at the age of 16 and served in the Korean War before being discharged in February 1953.

He was born March 26, 1933, at Burton View to Martin Robert and Edith Lela Horn Last.

He married Doris Malcom at Hartsburg Christian Church on Dec. 31, 1954. In 1959 they purchased and moved to the Hartsburg property where they lived from then on.

He is survived by his wife, of Hartsburg; one daughter, Leslee Moore (and Alan) of Lincoln; four sons, David Last (and Debbie) of Lincoln, Loren Last of McLean, Scott Last of Hartsburg and Eric (and Penny) Last of Williamsville; two sisters, Barbara Steffens and Violet Robinson, both of Lincoln; one brother, Leslie Last (and Evelyn) of Lincoln; three granddaughters, Kim Vogel, Carrie Last and Bethany Last, all of Lincoln; and two grandsons, Kendall Last and Jacob Last, both of Williamsville.

The family was active in Prairieland Christian Church, and Mr. Last was a deacon for many years. The old building bears his marks, for with the help of his children he installed the fellowship hall windows, the basement glass block windows, the attic insulation and the stairway to the basement from the outside. He initiated the practice of Sunday school children being allowed to ring the bell each week.

After the last of the children were grown, Dana and Doris became foster parents to six teenage boys through the Springfield Rutledge Youth Foundation.

His hobby was collecting replicas of tractors, steam engines, trucks, cars and iron banks.

He was educated in New Holland and Lincoln schools.

Memorial donations may be made to Prairieland Christian Church or Wayne J. Schall Hospice and will be accepted at the funeral home.

CHENOA -- Evelyn M. Madigan, 69, formerly of Lincoln, died Sunday, Oct. 16, 2005, from congestive heart failure at Meadows Mennonite Retirement Village, Chenoa.

Visitation was on Wednesday at Bennett Funeral Home in Lincoln.

A funeral Mass was at 10 a.m. Thursday at Holy Family Catholic Church in Lincoln, with Father Thomas Taylor officiating.

Burial is in Holy Cross Cemetery, Lincoln.

Mrs. Madigan tirelessly supported her husband throughout his political career.

She was born in Freeport on May 1, 1936, to Ralph and Thelma George. When she was in her teens, her family moved to Lincoln, where she made many lifelong friends and met her husband, Edward Madigan. They were wed on Sept. 3, 1955, and had been married nearly 40 years before he died, on Dec. 7, 1994.

She is survived by their three daughters: Kimberly Madigan of Montreal, Canada; Kellie Clapper and her husband, Mike, of Normal; and Mary Elizabeth Gyori, and her husband, Phil, of Leawood, Kan. She also leaves behind five grandchildren, whom she adored: Kate Clapper, 21, Elizabeth Clapper, 13, Emily Gyori, 12, William Gyori, 10, and Anna Gyori, 6. She was also close to her siblings and is survived by her five sisters and two brothers: Dorothy Bennis of Thousand Oaks, Calif., Kenneth George of Freeport, Shirley Johnson of Durand, Carolyn Smith of Rushville, Judy Parsons of Lincoln, Dick George of Lincoln and Gail George of Batavia.

Mrs. Madigan's grace, poise and lovely smile helped her husband win elections, and she won the hearts of those who met her. In addition to her work as a political spouse, she volunteered for the CARE anti-poverty organization and raised funds for the U.S. National Arboretum. She was also an active member and former officer of the Congressional Club. In her later years, she served as a Eucharistic minister for Holy Family Catholic Church in Lincoln.

Above all, she was devoted to her family. She was a dedicated, loving mother and a wonderful grandmother. She will be greatly missed.

Memorial donations will be accepted at the funeral home and may be made to the Meadows Mennonite Retirement Community, Alzheimer's Wing, 24588 Church St., Chenoa, IL 61726.

Larry Hunt

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MIDDLETOWN -- Larry Lewis Hunt, 52, of Middletown died Saturday, Oct. 15, 2005, at 7:43 p.m. at Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital in Lincoln.

Visitation will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday at Fricke-Calvert-Schrader Funeral Home in Lincoln. A service conducted by Lincoln Lodge 210 AF & AM will follow at 7 p.m.

Mr. Hunt was an independent catastrophic insurance adjuster and owned and operated Austin's Dog House Inc. in Middletown.

He was born Oct. 2, 1953, in Stoutsville, Mo., to Carl and Thelma Pollard Hunt. He married Ruth Robbins on Feb. 6, 1997, in Las Vegas, Nev.

He is survived by his wife of Middletown; his mother, of Paris, Mo.; two sons, Carl Lewis Hunt of Pensacola, Fla., and Stephen Wayne (and Tammy) Hunt of Hannibal, Mo.; one stepdaughter, Rachel Sisk of Lincoln; two stepsons, Ronald Sisk of Lincoln and Ryan (and Sara) Sisk of Lincoln; two sisters, Marilyn (and Ronald) Davis of Columbia, Mo., and Charlotte (and Tom) Webb of Jefferson City, Mo.; and eight grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his father.

He was a member of Paris Baptist Church in Paris, Mo., J.L. Anderson Lodge 318 AF & AM in Augusta, Eagles Lodge 2708, Lincoln Salt Creek ABATE and was a trustee of Lincoln Sportsmen's Club.

Memorials may be made to the American Cancer Society.