William Philip "Bill" DeWerff, 77, of Owaneco, died on Saturday, Nov. 17, 2018, while in hospice at HSHS St. John's Hospital in Springfield.
Visitation will be held Friday, Nov. 23, from 5 to 7 p.m. at McCracken-Dean Funeral Home in Pana. Funeral services will be held Saturday, Nov. 24, beginning at 10 a.m. at the United in Faith Church in Pana with Pastor Joel Jackle-Hugh officiating. Burial will follow at Ohlman Cemetery.
Mr. DeWerff was born April 12, 1941, at his family's home in Nokomis, to Roy and Beatrice (Avery) DeWerff. He married Elaine Clouter of Owaneco in 1963, and she survives.
He graduated from Nokomis High School with the class of 1959, and continued his education by receiving a bachelor's degree in agriculture education from Southern Illinois University in 1963. He then went on to earn his master's degree from the University of Illinois in 1968.
Mr. DeWerff began his career as an agriculture teacher in Hardin. After two years, he and his wife moved to Windsor, where he would teach agriculture education for 11 years. During his time in Windsor, he also worked for the Army Corps of Engineers as a park ranger at Lake Shelbyville.
In 1976, it was a toss-up between education and dirt for Mr. DeWerff, and the dirt won. He farmed and raised cattle and hogs from 1976 to 2005.
His hobbies always took him to the outdoors, playing golf and softball all summer. He spent long hours in the duck blinds, quail and pheasant hunting, along with fishing the lakes of Illinois. When he wasn't hunting, he was watching his favorite sports teams, which included any team his grandchildren participated in.
Mr. DeWerff was a member of the United in Faith Church in Pana, and loved to travel with his wife and watch western movies on TV.
In addition to his wife, he is survived by his son, Wayne (Pamela) DeWerff of Owaneco; a daughter, Karen (Amos) Crapse of Columbus, IN; grandchildren, Megan (Zachary) DeWerff Rhodes of Taylorville, Brock DeWerff of Owaneco and Kenny (fiancee Alex Bradley) Crapse of Nashville, TN; and a brother, Roger (June) DeWerff of Nokomis.
Mr. DeWerff was preceded in death by his parents; and a sister, Patricia Grimes.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the United in Faith Church, 609 Fairgrounds Road, Pana, IL 62557, and will be accepted by McCracken-Dean Funeral Home in Pana.
Online condolences to the family may be left at www.mdfh.com.
