Mary Julia ‘Julie’ Hage

DIXON – Mary Julia “Julie” Hage, nee Horton, passed away peacefully on January 9, 2020, at the age of 83 at home in Dixon, Illinois, surrounded by her family and friends.

Julie was born on April 21, 1936, in Sublette, to Claude and Mary Frances (Wilson) Horton.

She is preceded in death by her parents; her sister, Nancy (Milford) Bunger; and two grandchildren, Hope and Isabel.

She is survived by her husband, Charles E. Hage; children, David (Becky) Hage of Dixon, Christopher (Elizabeth) Hage of San Jose, California, Sara (Allison Precht) Hage of Chicago, Illinois, Amanda (Paul) Brenegan of Madison, Wisconsin and six grandchildren, Christian Hage, Noah Hage, Isaac Hage, Cora Hage, James Brenegan, Elle Brenegan and several nieces and nephews.

A graduate of Dixon High School, Julie attended Cottey College in Nevada, Missouri, and graduated from Beloit College with a Bachelor of Science in geology, appealing to her love of natural science and history. She then attended secretarial school and started her career as a geologist in Washington, D.C., working for the United States Geological Survey, where she researched and published technical writings. She went on to work for the International Minerals and Chemical Corporation in Skokie, Illinois, and then moved to Dixon and taught kindergarten in Amboy, Illinois, in a one-room school house.

She was married to Charles Hage for nearly 53 years, and together they were committed and loving parents. Julie loved living in and being from Dixon and was a proud and involved member of her community. She was a member of the First Presbyterian Church in Dixon, Daughters of the American Revolution, and the P.E.O. Sisterhood. Julie was also very active with the Franklin Creek Conservation Association, for which she served as the President/Chair of the board of directors, which appealed to her love of the Dixon area and her family history, as her ancestors built the original Franklin Grove Grist Mill.

She had a tremendous thirst for knowledge, an incredibly memory and loved learning. She was a voracious reader and she loved travelling, shopping, art and attending art and antique shows, enjoyed playing bingo and bridge with her various bridge groups, and absolutely lived to be in the water. She was a lifeguard at Memorial Pool in her teens, taught all of her children to swim as toddlers, and slalom water skied into her seventies. She was very involved with her kids in scouting and lived vicariously through their adventures in life – as she loved adventures herself.

Visitation will be from 4-7 p.m., Monday, January 13, 2020, at the Preston-Schilling Funeral Home Ltd. Funeral service will be at 2 p.m., Tuesday January 14, 2020, at First Presbyterian Church, Dixon, Ill., with the Pastor Bunyan Cocar, officiating. Burial will follow at Oakwood Cemetery in Dixon, Ill.

Memorials may be directed to the PEO Sisterhood and Franklin Creek Conservation Association.

Arrangements were completed by Preston-Schilling Funeral Home in Dixon.

Condolences may be sent to www.prestonschilling.com.