William H. Wilkinson ~ Sept. 16, 1942 - Nov. 29, 2024
https://www.haskellfuneral.com/obituaries/William-Harold-Bill-Wilkinson?obId=33946263
Wyoming - William H. “Bill” Wilkinson, 82, of Wyoming, passed away November 29, 2024, at his home after fighting pancreatic cancer for eleven months.
He was born September 16, 1942, in Kewanee, to Harold and Betty (Graves) Wilkinson. He grew up in rural Wyoming and was in the WCHS Class of 1961. He served in the United States Army and was stationed in Iran during the Vietnam war. During that time he was awarded a National Defense Service Sharpshooter (rifle) medal. He married Susan C. Hill on June 26, 1971, and celebrated 50 years of marriage before her death in 2021.
He was also preceded in death by his parents; sister, Becky (Steve) Bogner of Sparland; niece, Jennifer Wilkinson of Pekin; nephew, Michael Kenyon of Sparland; brothers-in-law, Ed (Pat) Borop of Peoria (formerly Chillicothe) and Melvin “Lyle” (Chris) Hill, II of Surprise, AZ.
Surviving are three children, Christina (Jim) Lauwerens of Rochester, Anita Wilkinson of Pekin, (formerly Henry), and Raymond (fiancé Robin) Wilkinson of El Paso; and five grandchildren Jordan, Caitlin, and Jared Lauwerens, and Haden and Hunter Wilkinson. He is also survived by siblings, Jim (Barb) Wilkinson of Huntsville, AL, Jeanette Wilkinson of Macomb, Pat Borop of Peoria (formerly Chillicothe), Rhonda Wilkinson of Canton, and David Wilkinson of Sparland; and by many nieces, nephews, and great nieces and nephews who live throughout Illinois, Texas, and Alabama.
Bill worked as a diesel mechanic for Caterpillar for 35 years. He belonged to Chillicothe Sportsmen’s Club and enjoyed his weekly target practice and volunteer time there. Fishing was another lifelong hobby he enjoyed in his free time. His free time was rare because his skills in trades such as carpentry, plumbing, welding, farming, gardening, electrical, and mechanics kept him busy with projects on his farm and helping his friends and family.
Visitation will be from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Friday, December 6, 2024, at Haskell Funeral & Cremation Services in Wyoming. His funeral service will be at Wyoming United Methodist Church at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, December 7, 2024. Following a meal at the church there will be a short graveside service at the chapel in Swan Lake Memory Gardens in Peoria at 2:30 p.m. Rev. Rebecca Klemm will officiate.
Memorial contributions can be made to First Baptist Church Food Pantry, serving Wyoming. The family requests that any floral and memorial gifts please be made directly through A Few of My Favorite Things, 309-695-9966, located at 110 S. 7th Street, Wyoming.
Eulogy
It was just a little over three years ago when I stood up in front of you and shared memories of my mom at her funeral. I had one regret from that morning that I am going to be bold and do today.
Almost a year ago, we discovered dad had a mass on his pancreas and as a family we supported his decision to focus on living the best life he had for the days the Lord has planned for him. We worked with a few different doctors and started a variety of therapies to help support his body and prayed for healing. Anytime someone tried to “speak death” over him, dad would tell them he still had work to do. He had trees to trim, a shed to build, equipment to fix, trees to cut down, grass to mow, CRP ground to maintain, a water heater to replace in his camper, and I could go on and on. Dad’s project list was pretty long. If he didn’t have a few projects in the works at his house, he was working on a project for someone else. This year, despite a failing body he kept working on his projects as much as possible. We checked quite a few off that list.
But don’t worry, he still took time to enjoy family and friends and go fishing…..sometimes those two things were done at the same time.
Dad’s work ethic was one of his most admirable characteristics. After he was honorably discharged from the army, he worked for over 35 years at Caterpillar as a diesel mechanic. His responsibilities changed throughout the years, but he was always in a role that required hard, manual labor. When I got old enough to pay better attention to his stories about his job, he was working at the Tech Center as a research mechanic. He would tell us his job was to blow up the engines and tell the engineers what they did wrong and how they needed to fix it. We have heard stories from others who said the engineers wanted my dad working on their projects because he knew what he was doing and he would get the job done.
He didn’t lecture us about having a strong work ethic….he just modeled it and brought us alongside him to help with many of his projects.
Shortly after my parents were married, they bought their property just outside of Wyoming and lived in a trailer for 5 years. I don’t know all of the details as I was just a baby. But basically, my parents slowly built their house as time and money allowed. Dad did the plumbing, electrical, building, painting….all of the things. His skills in the trades were expansive. And when we got old enough to help him that is what we did….sometimes more willingly than others.
There was no division of labor when it came to my parents. It didn’t matter if we were working on the house, baling hay, butchering livestock, or any of the many tasks around the property we were all involved. Christina and I didn’t know that it isn’t typical for girls to know how to use power tools or drive a tractor. Raymond wasn’t alone when it came time for the heavy lifting to be done. And the same is true for the skills our mom shared with us in the kitchen and at the sewing machine.
A few years ago, my church was remodeling our building in downtown Wyoming. We had lots of work nights helping with some of the construction. One night a group of us were working and we needed new drill bits and we couldn’t find what we needed in the tools the contractor left for us to use. And I said I had some in my car. My dear friend Rick very hesitantly came out to my car to look at what I had and I pulled out my box of drill bits from my tool bag and he said to me in disbelief….Who are you? And I quickly replied “I’m the daughter of William H. Wilkinson.” Dad made sure I was well stocked in skills, tools, and the core belief that I could do whatever work needed to be done.
I know that many of you had firsthand experience with my dad’s skills. His generosity was another one of his admirable traits. You need help replacing your roof….dad would be there. You need your car fixed…dad would bring his tools. You need help moving or a new water heater installed or a pedal tractor put together or your door handle switched out or help getting your crop harvested….oh my, I know many of you have been blessed by my dad’s generosity over the years and those are just the things that I know about. He was generous with his time, skills, and finances for those in need.
One of the ways he and mom were most generous with their money was when it came to Christina, Raymond and I going to college. Even though dad didn’t have a formal college education, he sacrificed a lot over the years to make sure they had saved enough money to pay for all three of our college degrees. We were blessed tremendously to be able to graduate debt-free. We grew up hearing stories about how he supported two of his sisters as they went through nursing school and cosmetology school. We grew up knowing that our formal education was just as important as the life-skills he was teaching us at home.
As I was making my notes to write dad’s eulogy, I asked Christina and Raymond if they had topics they wanted to make sure that I included. Those have been woven into what you have heard already. But we also decided this was the best time to announce the winner of our family’s “Favorite Child” contest. This is a contest that has been going on technically for 50 years…..but has been the family joke for about 25 years. For 11 years, Christina was way ahead in the race because she gave my parents their first three grandkids. But then when Raymond’s two boys were born, the race became more balanced. Five years ago, when I started helping more with their health needs, I started to catch up. But it is really hard to catch up to the joy the grandkids bring.
(All three of us at the same time.) “ME”
Oh our parents are laughing in heaven hearing us now.
I have one more story to share and I hope that I can give this justice.
Having a strong work ethic, and being talented in many skills, and being generous are all wonderful traits to have. But when it comes to eternity they mean nothing. My dad is living in heaven for eternity because of his faith in Jesus Christ and recognizing that Jesus died for his sins.
Dad didn’t talk about his faith…until this year. I was so honored to have a front row seat to watching and hearing dad’s faith in Jesus become real and become personal.
One of the ways that we were able to clearly see Holy Spirit flowing out of dad was in his attitude. As his body was failing him miserably, and his pain was intense, he was ministering to everyone he was in contact with. He started referring to Christina, Raymond, and I as his angels. He thanked us constantly for everything we did for him....no matter how little of a gesture it was, he was so appreciative. When he was in the hospital, the staff would come in and ask how he was doing, he would give them a quick answer and then start asking about them and how they are doing. Then his crew of angels grew as each of them were blessed with that title. Then after we got home and the home health crew came and then friends and family came….he checked in on everyone, thanked them for coming and helping him, usually called them one of his angels, and more often than not, sent them off with a hug, a kiss for the extra special ones, and an “I love you.” Those words alone, may not seem like much, but if you knew how miserable he felt most of the time, you would be as confident as I am in knowing that it was Holy Spirit that filled him with that joy and peace and love that overflowed on to others.
I will end with a Bible verse from the book of Titus chapter 3: verses 4-7,
But then god our Savior showed us his kindness and love. He saved us, not because of the good things we did, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins and gave us a new life through the Holy Spirit. He generously poured out the Spirit upon us because of what Jesus Christ our Savior did. He declared us not guilty, because of his great kindness. And now we know that we will inherit eternal life.
Bill was my younger brother by only 9 months. We grew up playing and doing chores on the farm, as brothers would do. As we grew older, life took us in different directions, but we remained close due to our shared interests. If I had a question about something I was doing, I would call Bill and see if he had a solution for me.
Having lived in Alabama for almost 60 years has not changed the love and closeness that I feel toward Bill or any of my siblings and their families. As they say, absence makes the heart grow stronger.
Barb and I did drive up a week or so before Bill passed and for that I am very grateful. He was in pain, but we were able to spend quality time with him while he was still alert enough to visit. I was also glad that during that time, all of my siblings, with the exception of Jeanette who was down with the flu, did get to be with him.
Bill was always kind and gracious. He would give the shirt off of his back if someone needed it. He always told me and Barb that when we come to visit we always had a place to stay. Bill didn't know this, but I had a secret alternative...I got to pretend that I was back farming again.
It is hard to lose a family member, but as we say goodbye, we remember the life he lived and the love he gave. I am so thankful that Bill is no longer in pain and is in the presence of our Heavenly Father. Thank you for being a great brother, Bill. I love you and will miss you.
Christina, Anita, and Raymond, you all are in our prayers. When things get rough, remember to put you trust in our Savior and Lord, Jesus. We love you.
Duane's Tribute
Jordan's Tribute
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