Billy Brehm

Billy J. “Bill” Brehm, 71, of Decatur, IL, went home to be with the Lord December 8, 2015, at Decatur Memorial Hospital surrounded by his family.Funeral services will be 10:30 a.m. Friday, December 11, at Riverside Baptist Church. Visitation will be 4-7 p.m. Thursday, December 10, at Brintlinger and Earl Funeral Home, Decatur. Burial will be in Graceland Cemetery, Decatur, with military rites. Memorials may be made to Riverside Baptist Church or Oasis Day Center.Bill was born on August 10, 1944 to Billy A. and Edna (Kellogg) L. Brehm at St. Mary’s Hospital in Decatur. He married Cynthia “Cindi” Lynn Oxford on June 11, 1972. They celebrated 43 years of marriage in June.Bill graduated from Stephen Decatur High School in 1962. He joined the U.S. Navy in 1965 and enrolled in the Navy Nuclear Power Program, which included 2 years of schooling, followed by 4 years to serve in the fleet. In 1967, he completed submarine school and then served on 2 nuclear submarines until 1971 when he completed his service.Bill met Cindi shortly after returning to Decatur. They started dating in the summer of 1971 and went to many church activities together as dates. He accepted Christ as his Savior on June 10, 1972, the night before their wedding. As soon as they were married, they moved to Auburn, Nebraska where Bill started his career in nuclear power at Cooper Nuclear Power Station. They moved back to Decatur in 1976 when Bill accepted a position with Clinton Power Station. He worked at the power station for the next 24 years until he retired in 2000. After retiring, he sold cars at Douglas Dodge Pontiac, GMC in Clinton until 2006.Bill was dedicated to serving the Lord. He served as a Sunday School teacher, deacon, and was a very active member at Riverside Baptist Church. He put God first in everything he did and was very vocal about how much He had blessed him.Surviving are his wife, Cindi, daughters, Kelly Wagoner (Jeff), and Jennifer Skelley (Joe), his brother, Barry Brehm, sister Dana Brehm (Larry Baumann) and sister Debra Craycroft (Steve). He is also survived by his 3 grandchildren - Jayci Wagoner, Maddie and Tyler Skelley. He was preceded in death by his parents Bill and Edna Brehm.Bill was an avid new car fan. He owned 69 new cars in his 71 years of life. As he always said, “I’ve always been car crazy.” He loved washing and waxing cars and took care of his daughters’ cars even after they were married. Anyone who knew Bill knew his love of cars and would always ask him for his advice. His wife, daughters and sons-in-law, grandchildren, brother and sisters meant everything to him and he did everything he could to show them how much he loved them. He also loved his church family and will be greatly missed by all who knew him. "
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