William F. Kerber Obituary (1935 - 2017)

William F. Kerber, 81, of Normal, passed away at 9:34 p.m., Sunday, April 9, 2017 at Advocate BroMenn Medical Center in Normal.His graveside service will be at 11:00 a.m., Thursday, April 13, 2017 at St. Marys Cemetery in Bloomingtonwith Rev. Matthew Deptula officiating. Military rites will be accorded by the Bloomington-Normal American Legion Honor Guard. A celebration of Bills life will be held at 1:00 p.m., Saturday, April 15, 2017 at the Bloomington Moose Lodge #745. Carmody-Flynn Funeral Home, Bloomington is assisting the family with arrangements.In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to Central Catholic High School Building Fund or Marcfirst.Bill was born August 18, 1935 to Clement and Alice Stretch Kerber. He was born and raised on the Cooksville family home that his father and his uncle Joe Kerber built. He married Velma J. Cox on April 2, 1971 in Colfax. She survives.He is also survived by four children, Teresa (Gary Biddle) Mann of Heyworth, Toni (Ed) Kerber-Dellow of Frederick, CO, Tami (Paul) Schulz of Normal and A.J. (Jennifer) Kerber of Bloomington; 10 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren; three sisters, Jean Miller of Normal, Kate Wade of Bloomington and Judy Kerber of Colfax; and several nieces and nephews.He was preceded in death by his parents, two sisters, Evelyn Kerber Stevens Cox and Mary Lou Swailes and two brothers, Little Joe Kerber and Fritz Kerber and a granddaughter, Brandi Marie Kerber.Bill was a 1954 graduate of Octavia High School and served in the US Army during the Korean war from 1954-1956. He was a hardworking man who always had two jobs. Some of these jobs include farming with his family during his childhood, maintenance for the State of Illinois, Co-Owned Kerber-Hadaway Standard Gas Station in Colfax with Ronnie Hadaway and working on the Texas Pipeline. On July 1, 1969, he was one of the first to join the Normal Fire Department, where he served 26 years as an engineer. He also worked part-time driving tandem trucks for Bill Wright, Stark Excavating, Inc., and Mid State Petroleum.Bill was a member of Holy Trinity Catholic Church. He was a NASCAR and Word of Outlaw racing fan and had competed in many euchre tournaments.