Paul Dean McElroy, 86, of Irving, died Thursday, April 18, 2024 at Hillsboro Health.
Visitation for Mr. McElroy was held Sunday, April 21, from 1 to 3 p.m. at Stiehl Dawson Funeral Home, located at 200 E. State St. in Nokomis. Cremation rites were accorded and private burial will held at a later date.
Mr. McElroy was born Aug. 30, 1937 in Boody, to Kenneth and Mary (Seagle) McElroy. He attended high school in Nokomis, then joined the Army. He later went on to earn his BS in business and a BA in Industrial Technology. He and Maxine Higginbotham were united in marriage on November 22, 1954 and had four children in the 14 years they were married. They remarried on October 23, 2020 and she survives. He proudly served his country in the US Army for 20 years, achieving the rank of Chief Warrant Officer. He served three years in Germany, one year in Korea and three tours of duty in Vietnam and was stationed at several posts in the US. He travelled extensively after the service to Egypt, Trinidad, Spain, Italy, Brazil and Tobago while working as an independent soybean processing consultant. He enjoyed genealogy, fishing with his sons and was a huge Illini fan, a Mason and a member of the VFW.
In addition to his wife, Maxine, Mr. McElroy is survived by his sons, Ronald (Janet) McElroy of Hillsboro and Roger (Kay) McElroy of Litchfield; grandchildren, David (Ashleigh) McElroy, Danielle (Greg) Seago, Kaitlin (Connor) Jachino, Allison McElroy and Tarron McElroy; great-grandchildren, Viola McElroy, Zoey Seago and baby Joy, due soon; and sister, Marilyn Gonet of Nokomis.
Mr. McElroy was preceded in death by his son, Randal McElroy; son Robert McElroy; daughter, Paula (McElroy) Stawicki; and brothers, Michael, Lyle, Darrel and Dallas.
Memorials are suggested to Myotinic Dystrophy Foundation, 1004A O’Reilly Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94129; www.myotonic.org
