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MOUNT MORRIS – Charles C. Beard, 93, of Mount Morris, died Saturday, April 23, 2016 at Pinecrest Manor in Mount Morris following a brief illness.
He was born July 7, 1922 in Fairbank, Iowa, the son of Ira E. and Cassie (Cloyd) Beard. He attended Maple Grove Country School and graduated from Mount Morris High School, Class of 1940. He married Marjorie F. Horst on Aug. 23, 1947, in Mount Morris. She preceded him in death on June 4, 2007. He was a lifelong farmer in Mount Morris.
Charles was a member of Trinity Lutheran Church. He was a member of the Ogle County Farm Bureau and served on the Board of Directors for Palmyra, Lincoln, Nashua (PLN) Insurance Co. He was a 59-year member of Mystic Tie Masonic Lodge No. 167 A.M. & F.M. (Polo) and a 59-year member of the Mount Morris Lions Club. He served as the 1985 Lions District 1-D governor on the Board of Trustees of the Lions of Illinois Foundation. He was a 50-year member of Tebala Shrine Temple; in 2015, he was given the distinction of becoming a Tebala Shrine Ambassador. He was a member of the Rockford York Rite Bodies, Crusader, Commandery No. 17 Knights Templar (Rockford), and a life member of Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite N.M.J. of the Valley Freeport. He was a 56-year (life) member of the Mount Morris Moose Lodge No. 1551, a 50-plus-year member of the Mount Morris Goodfellows, and a former reserve deputy of the Ogle County Sheriff’s Department.
Survivors include his daughter, Connie (Richard) Mongan of Mount Morris; son, Charles E. (Debra) Beard, of Mount Morris; five grandchildren; and nine great-grandchildren. Charles also was preceded in death by his parents and sister, Margaret L. (Beard) Wilkinson.
Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at Finch Funeral Home, 405 E. Hitt St., Mount Morris, with Masonic rites accorded. The funeral will be at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Trinity Lutheran Church, 308 E. Brayton Road, Mount Morris, with the Rev. Josh Ehrler, pastor, officiating. Burial will be at Oakwood Cemetery, with a luncheon to follow at the Mount Morris Moose Family Center.
Memorials have been established to Shriners Hospitals for Children.