Harold J. Hurd, Jr.

SIDNEY – Harold J. Hurd Jr., 90, of Sidney passed away at 5:38 a.m. Wednesday (March 22, 2017) at Carle Foundation Hospital, Urbana.

Private graveside services will be held at a later date. Freese Funeral Home, Sidney, is assisting with arrangements.

Mr. Hurd was born on June 9, 1926, at Champaign, a son to Harold J. and Vera Burnett Hurd Sr. He married Betty Sanford on July 30, 1950, at Champaign. She preceded him in death on March 4, 2016.

Surviving are three sons, James Daniel (Gale) Hurd of Dora, Mo., Harold Stephen (Deanna) Hurd of San Jose, Calif., and Jeffrey Paul (Jill) Hurd of Mansfield; six grandchildren, Lyndsey Hurd of Dora, Mo., Kerry Hurd of Champaign, Sara (Chad) May of Urbana, Jake (Eleesha) Hurd of San Jose, Calif., Luke Hurd of San Jose, Calif., and Alexandria Hurd of Fort Myers, Fla.; and five great-grandchildren, Korey Murphy, Emma, Jayden and Suzanna May and Charlie Hurd.

He was preceded in death by his parents and two sisters.

Mr. Hurd served in the U.S. Navy during World War II when he was a Seabee.

He was a member of Carpenters Local 44. He also co-owned Hurd and Sons Construction. He was proud to be on the crew that was contracted to build the Assembly Hall in Champaign.

He and his wife were avid fishermen.

Irvin Lee Smith

ST. JOSEPH – Irvin Lee Smith, 80, of St. Joseph passed away at 10:12 a.m. Tuesday (March 21, 2017) at Helia Healthcare Center of Champaign.

There will be a memorial visitation from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday, March 24, 2017, at the Renner-Wikoff Chapel, 1900 S. Philo Road, Urbana.

Irvin was born July 20, 1936, in Urbana, a son of Orville Franklin and Ethel Pearl Smith. He married Diane Fisher on May 20, 1987, in Homer. She survives.

Also surviving are four children, Kurt Douglas (Theresa) Smith of North Richland Hills, Texas, Klint Bradley (Alicia) Smith of Champaign, Kamette Gwynee (Mike) Hixson of Fithian and Kale Paul (Kelli) Smith of Urbana; two stepchildren, Kristine M. Fisher of Champaign and William B. Fisher of Carbondale, Colo.; four grandchildren; three stepgrandchildren; five great-grandchildren; and a sister, Casey Earl of Cincinnati, Ohio.

Irvin was a mechanic and service manager for Lincoln-Mercury car dealerships for many years and also worked as a laborer for Local 703. He was a member of the Urbana VFW and the Urbana American Legion.

Irvin drove his sprint car to heaven ... he was going fast and keeping to the left.

Robert Lee Rogers

SADORUS – Robert Lee Rogers, 86, of Sadorus passed away at 7:40 p.m. Monday (March 20, 2017) at Champaign County Nursing Home, Urbana.

Graveside services will be at 2 p.m. Saturday, March 25, 2017, at Bailey Memorial Cemetery, Tolono, with the Rev. Ken Young officiating. Visitation will be from 1 to 2 p.m. Saturday at Freese Funeral Home, Tolono. Military rites will be accorded.

Mr. Rogers was born Jan. 1, 1931, at Ogden, a son to Clifton and Anna Wilfong Rogers. He married Norma Jean Roof on March 18, 1970, at Savoy; she survives.

Also surviving are five children, Cliff (Joyce) Rogers of Lodge, Bonnie Reynolds of Urbana, Teresa Rogers of Reed Springs, Mo., Doug (Debbie) Roof of Tolono and Rhonda Wilson of Champaign; and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his parents; a brother, Denny; and a son, Howard Roof.

He was employed at Alloy Engineering and Casting, Champaign, retiring in 1997. He served in the U.S. Army from 1951 to 1953. He enjoyed stock car racing and loved to tinker on anything electrical or mechanical.

Memorials may be made to Champaign County Humane Society.

Dorothy J Loschen Oakley

SAVOY – Dorothy J. Oakley, 80, of Savoy passed away at 2:20 p.m. Monday (March 20, 2017) at Carle Foundation Hospital in Urbana.

Visitation will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday, March 23, 2017, at the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, 2101 S. Prospect Ave., Champaign. Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. Friday, March 24, 2017, at the church, with visitation one hour prior. The Rev. Tom Hillertz will officiate. Burial will be in the Kopmann Cemetery in Flatville/Royal.

The Edwards Funeral Home in Arcola is assisting with arrangements.

Dorothy was born on March 8, 1937, in Thomasboro. She was a daughter of Albert R. and Marie F. (Meier) Loschen. She married Kenneth L. Oakley on Nov. 24, 1956, in Thomasboro. He passed away on Sept. 12, 1991.

She is survived by two daughters, Sherrill Houchens and her husband Rick of Urbana and Debbie Stenger and her husband Gary of Hindsboro; six grandchildren, Brad Houchens and his wife Ashley, Aimee Davis and her husband Collin, Garrett Stenger and his wife Rachel, Garrnett Nichols and her husband Ryan, Garrison Stenger and his wife Kelsi, and Gretchen Stenger; five great-grandchildren; one brother, Kenny Loschen and his wife Juanita of Champaign; one sister-in-law, Bernice Loschen of Flatville; and several nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her parents; her loving husband, Kenneth; one brother, Ralph Loschen; one sister, Bernice Loschen; and an infant great-grandson, Camron.

Dorothy was a graduate of Rantoul High School.

She had worked at Busey Bank in Urbana for 31 years, and she was a co-owner of the Gifford-Flatville baseball team.

Church was very important to Dorothy. She was a charter member of the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Champaign.

She was an avid St. Louis Cardinals fan and an avid Illini fan. She enjoyed working puzzles, but most of all she enjoyed watching her grandchildren play sports as long as they were winning.

Memorials may be made to the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Champaign.

Melissa Gay Wienke Morrison

LOS ALAMOS, N.M. – Melissa Gay (Wienke) Morrison, a resident of Los Alamos, N.M., passed away after battling many health problems on Thursday (March 16, 2017).

She was born on Feb. 18, 1948, to Bonnie Jean and Ernest Henry Louis Wienke Jr. She grew up in Homer, and graduated from Homer High School. Melissa went on to graduate from Patricia Stevens College in St. Louis, Mo., before working at University Ford in Champaign.

She married John Morrison on June 14, 1969, and then moved to Minneapolis for a brief stay before moving on to California. In 1971, they moved to Los Alamos, N.M. She had two children, Amanda Beth (1972) and Aaron Michael (1974).

After her children were older, she went on to earn her associate degree in English from Northern New Mexico Community College, and then her bachelor of arts in English from College of Santa Fe. She was an avid lifelong learner and was particularly interested in English and history.

She was preceded in death by her father, Ernest Wienke Jr., and her mother, Bonnie Jean (Ellis).

She is survived by two sisters, Candace (Wienke) Thurman and Kristina (Wienke) Finney; her son, Aaron Morrison and wife Lindsey Rivera; and her daughter, Amanda "Mandy" Ferran and husband Scott and their three children, Lindsay, Sabrina and Shane.

Her great joys in life were Christmas, needlepoint, embroidery, sewing, baking, flowers, animals, her friends and her family.

The family wishes to thank the staff at Sombrillo Nursing Home and Aspen Ridge Assisted Living for the care she received the past two years.

Memorial services will be held at 11 a.m. April 8 at Bethlehem Evangelical Lutheran Church in Los Alamos, N.M. In celebration of her life, please wear a pretty color if attending services. Interment at GAR Cemetery in Homer will follow at a later date. In lieu of other expressions of sympathy, please make donations to the American Lupus Foundation.

The family of Melissa Gay (Wienke) Morrison has entrusted the care of their loved one to the DeVargas Funeral Home & Crematory of the Espanola Valley (505-747-7477, www.devargasfuneral.com).

Irvin Boyd Dalzell

WAKE FOREST, N.C. – Irvin Boyd Dalzell, 81, passed away on Monday (March 13, 2017) at Rex Hospital, Raleigh, N.C. He was born in Broadlands, the son of William Wayne and Helen Lucille (David) Dalzell.

Boyd was a veteran of the U.S. Army and a proud member of the 82nd Airborne, a member of the Wake Forest Lions Club and the Wake Forest Jaycees, and was very active with the Wake Forest Fourth of July committee.

He is survived by his wife, Helen C. (Branch) Dalzell; a sister, Phyllis Ann Dalzell of Madison, Wis.; a brother, David "Dub" Wayne (Peggy) Dalzell of Champaign; his aunt, Louise (Duncan) David of St. Joseph; and a host of cousins, nieces and nephews. He leaves behind dear friends, George Kalas, Howard Hink and the Hilliard family, and a brother-in-law, Richard Branch.

He was preceded in death by his parents and a sister, Linda Helen Dalzell.

Memorial contributions may be made to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105.

Visitation was held Thursday evening, March 16, 2017, at Bright Funeral Home & Cremation Center, 405 S. Main St., Wake Forest, NC 27587.

Boyd's ashes will be buried at Pine Forest Gardens, Wake County, N.C.

Gloria Jean Nickelson

CHAMPAIGN – Gloria Jean Nickelson, 72, of Champaign passed away on Saturday (March 11, 2017) at home.

She was the daughter of James Owen and Hazel (McNeill) Nickelson. Her parents and sister preceded her in death. She is survived by two aunts and several cousins.

Graveside services will be held at 10 a.m. Thursday at Mount Olive Cemetery, Mayview.

Freese Funeral Home, St. Joseph, is assisting with arrangements