All Obituaries

Phyllis L. Hites, 83, of Champaign, previously of Mahomet, died on Monday evening, October 16, 2017 at Carle Foundation Hospital, Urbana. There will be a visitation on Thursday, Oct. 19 from 10-11 am at Blair-Owens Funeral Home, Mahomet. The funeral service will begin at 11:00 am at the funeral home. Burial will immediately follow at Grandview Memorial Gardens, Champaign. Phyllis was born on Sept. 19, 1934 in Urbana; a daughter of Charles and Bertha (Lunsway) Arie. She...

Allen E. Pearson, 67, passed away on Wednesday, October 11 at his home in Urbana. There will be a celebration of life service held at The Apple Dumpling Restaurant (2014 N. High Cross Rd.) in Urbana at 5:00 on Monday, October 16. All family and friends are welcome. Allen was born on October 11, 1950 in Urbana, IL to Norma Jean and George Osterman (both deceased). He married Debbie LaDow in 1969 and later married Debbie Carr (deceased) in 1975, the two loves of his...

Robert Clayton Russell Young, 34, of Mahomet, was born on July 29, 1983 and passed away on Thursday, Oct. 5, 2017. Clayton was born in Champaign. He is the son of Anne Tatman and Larry "LD" Jones (both now deceased). He is the adopted son of Sherri Kelly, she survives. Other survivors include his son, Robert Kayden Russell Young; 2 brothers, Casey Jones and Tim Kilman; a sister, Amber Kilman; and his grandmother, Sharon Frye, along with several nieces and...

Edwin R. Gordon, 97, passed away October 8, 2017, at Carle Foundation Hospital, Urbana. Ed was born in Aberdeen, Scotland on March 8, 1920, to the late Magdeline and Edwin Gordon. He grew up in Chicago, Illinois. During World War II, Ed was a Lt. Junior Grade in the US Navy, and captained the USS APc-23, a small costal transport. Upon returning to the US, he attended and graduated from Hanover College where he was a proud Sigma Chi. He married Virginia Beesley in 1948 and began...

Orville E. Frick, 88, of Mahomet died Friday, October 6, 2017 at Bridle Brook Assisted Living. Visitation will be from 5-7pm on Monday, Oct. 9) at Blair Owens Funeral Home (102 E Dunbar, Mahomet). Funeral Services will be at 10 am on Tuesday, Oct. 10 at Grace Church (800 W. Oak St, Mahomet). Burial will be at Grandview Memorial Gardens, Champaign. He was born in Sidney to Oscar and Mabel Frick on October 4, 1929. He married LaGreeta Ward on November 4, 1951. She...

Richard Pelczar, age 75, died peacefully on Friday (Sept. 29, 2017) at Carle Foundation Hospital in Urbana, surrounded by his family. He was born in East Chicago, Ind., in 1942, the second of four children born to Stanley and Mary (Gadzala) Pelczar. After graduating from Bishop Noll High School in Hammond, he attended Indiana University on a merit scholarship, receiving a bachelor of art with honors in government in 1964. Inspired by John F. Kennedy's inauguration...

Kenneth "Ken" C. Wierschem, 78, of Minocqua, Wis., passed away peacefully, surrounded by family Thursday, Sept. 28, 2017, at Carle Foundation Hospital in Champaign, due to complications from ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease.) Ken was born Aug. 21, 1939, in Milwaukee, Wis., to Henry and Sylvia Wierschem. After high school, he spent three years serving the country in the U.S. Army before obtaining his bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota and his...

James Lyle Hitchins, 91, of Mahomet, passed away on Wednesday September 20 at home. Jim was born May 29, 1926 in Dewey, the son of Philip and Emma Hitchins. He married Charlotte Hauge on July 10, 1949 at the Lutheran Church in Newark, IL. He was preceded in death by his parents, one son David, two brothers F. Howard Hitchins and Lloyd Hitchins, one sister Phyllis Hunsicker. Together Jim and Charlotte raised two sons, David (deceased), Thomas (Amy) Hitchins...

Aaron Julius Bidner (Jack), 72, of rural Gibson City was taken to be with the heavenly angels on Tuesday (September 19, 2017).   Jack was born to Owen and Geraldine Bidner in Champaign, IL, on March 15, 1945. On October 10, 1992, he married JoAnn (Jo) Smith in Gibson City. She survives in Rural Gibson City. He is also survived by a daughter, Julie Mathis (Kiefer, OK), a son, Neil (Beth) Bidner of Mahomet; step-sons Daniel (Jan) Rotramel of Newman, IL and Jeremy...

Peter Charles Cacioppo, formerly of Champaign, died Friday morning (Sept. 15, 2017) at age 81 after fighting his third cancer in the last two years. He died peacefully, surrounded by his wife, daughters, sons-in-law and grandchildren. The visitation will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 19, at Owens Funeral Home, 101 N. Elm St., Champaign. The funeral service will be at 10 a.m. Wednesday at the funeral home, followed by a graveside service by the Honor Guard at Woodlawn...