William Clark

Visitation will be from 5 to 8 P.M., Saturday, September 25, 2010, at Brintlinger and Earl Funeral Home, Decatur, IL. To celebrate Bills well-lived life, there will be a brief gathering at 1:30 P.M., Sunday, September 26, at the funeral home followed by a traditional New Orleans jazz procession to the graveside service at North Fork Cemetery in Decatur, then a celebration of his life at the Decatur Club.Memorials may be made to Make-A-Wish Foundation or St. Judes Childrens Foundation in Bills honor. Bill was born April 14, 1948, in Mt. Vernon, IL, to Eugene H. and Ruth (Ragland) Clark. He graduated from Mt. Vernon Township High School in 1966, where he holds the record for thirteen years perfect attendance. He attended Rend Lake Junior College, SIU Carbondale, Chastains Institute of Engineering, and Millikin University. Bill worked eight years at Mueller as a mechanical draftsman. He retired after thirty years at Caterpillar, Inc. in February 2009. He was for most of his employment, supervisor of Motor Graders, and at retirement was a Long Range Planning Analyst. He was an active member of the Region VI Society of Manufacturing Engineers, serving all chairs including President over his tenure, as well as serving on the Board of Directors at the national level. Following his retirement, he enjoyed working at Best Buy in Decatur.Bill married Pamela Dusharme (now Messenger) in November 1968, by whom he fathered two children. Bill remarried on July 16, 1988, to Susan B. (Haynes) Janes. Together, they shared the joy of raising five wonderful children: Todd Janes and his wife, Aimee, of Decatur; Major Neil Clark and wife Shelley, of Dayton, Ohio; Marci (Janes) Ingle and husband Jeff, of Decatur; Tori (Clark) Gebhart and husband, Dr. Brian Gebhart, of Bloomington; and Staci Janes, of Chicago.Bill adored his grandchildren, who lovingly called him Po. In age from thirteen years to eight months, they are Breanna, Makenna, Tallulah, Avery, EllaDonna, Robert, Lyla, Arianna, Andrew and Hudson.Bill was an avid NASCAR and Illini fan, woodworker, voracious reader, and was famous for growing Billys Lillies, but his fondest hobby was making wishes come true for his children and grandchildren. Strong but kindhearted, he was a man that was always there for friends and family, no matter what was needed, whether it was encouragement, kind words, a helping hand, or a kick in the pants. His lifes motto was, Lead, follow, or get out of the way.He also leaves behind his brother, Jim Clark, and wife Kat, of Glen Ellyn, IL; aunt Eleanor Wielt, of Kansas City, MO; stepmother Beverly Clark, of Cape Girardeau, MO; mother-in-law Dorothy Haynes, of Decatur; sister-in-law Cheryl Slankard and husband Dean, and many nieces and nephews. Preceding him in death are his parents and grandparents; his father-in-law Robert Haynes of Decatur; uncle Bud Wielt, of Kansas City; and aunt Lucille and uncle Ben Deboice, of Springfield, IL.Condolences may be left to the family at www.brintlingerandearl.com "
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