Obituary of Cloyd W. Richards

Peoria--Cloyd W. Richards, 98, passed away at 12:10 p.m. Friday, May 11, 2012, at Lutheran Hillside Village, Peoria. Cloyd was born August 8, 1913, in Palestine, IL to Everett and Edith Postlewaite Richards. His early ancestors had migrated west to the fertile lands along the Wabash River in southern Illinois. Although his father’s primary vocation was a carpenter, Cloyd and his two sisters (Lois and Ruth) and two brothers (twin brother Kenneth and Wendell) assisted the family income by growing and selling melons and other small crops grown on a small plot next to their house. His parents and siblings preceded him in death.

Cloyd graduated from Palestine High School in 1931 near the height of the Great Depression. Because there were no jobs available to allow him to take advantage of a partial scholarship to the University of Illinois, he moved to Peoria at the suggestion of an elder sister who was teaching in Peoria. He utilized his artistic talents to obtain a job assembling window displays at a retail store. Shortly thereafter he met another employee, Hannah Hendricks. They began dating and were married on July 19, 1936, in Peoria; they were soul mates. They had two children, Bernard (Teala) Richards of Chillicothe and Jean (Rich) Clinch of Dunlap.

With the growing responsibilities of starting a family, Cloyd decided to hone his natural drawing talents and began taking mechanical drawing classes at Bradley University, hoping to get into the engineering department at a major company. He obtained a job in R. G. LeTourneau’s parts & service department in Peoria, from which he worked his way up to general service manager. He was active in organizations such as Society of Automotive Engineers. Cloyd retired from LeTourneau (which later became WABCO) in 1978, after over 40 years of service. Following retirement, he started his own part-time business, making drawings for textbook publishers such as McGraw-Hill. He and Hannah had a very enjoyable retirement, playing golf, visiting with friends and family, wintering in Florida and Arizona, walking together for exercise, and following University of Illinois athletics and the St. Louis Cardinals. They were active members of Glen Oak Christian Church, where he was an elder emeritus. Cloyd again utilized his artistic talents to make a drawing of Glen Oak’s church complex, which is currently used in church publications.

Hannah passed away August 13, 2001. They were both very loving and proud parents and grandparents, giving their family many wonderful memories. They have 5 grandchildren, Mark (Michele) Richards of Los Gatos, California, Susan Shipley of Dallas, Texas, Jeff (Christie) Clinch of Downs, Illinois, Andy Clinch of Seattle, Washington, and Doug Lavell of Chicago, Illinois; and 11 great-grandchildren. Cloyd was kind, thoughtful, loving, determined, thorough, hard-working, and easy to get along with. He never complained or said anything negative about anyone. He possessed a subtle sense of humor and was a family-oriented man with many dedicated friends. He loved his family. He will be missed tremendously.

Services for Cloyd will be held Thursday, May 17, at 11:00 a.m.at Glen Oak Christian Church. Rev. Dr. Randy Williams will officiate. Visitation will be from 9:30 a.m. until the time of service. Burial will be at Swan Lake Memory Gardens. Hammitt-Hott Funeral Home, Princeville is in charge of arrangements.

Memorial contributions may be made to Glen Oak Christian Church.

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