Obituaries

Warren

Roger A. Hicks, 83

Roger A. Hicks, 83, of Warren, IL passed away on Saturday, March 12, 2022 at the Monroe Hospital in Monroe, WI.

He was born on January 19, 1939 to Barney and Helen (Millwright) Hicks in Freeport, IL. Roger married Noni Rood on December 15, 1962 at the Grace Lutheran Church in Darlington, WI. Roger farmed alongside his father Barney, he later operated his own farm. In 1974, Roger started Hicks Welding. Roger retired in 1992 when his son Roger took over. After retirement, Roger still made daily trips to the welding shop to visit with customers.

Roger was a member of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Warren. He was also a member of the Badger State Tractor Pullers. He built and ran his own tractor, known as the Buzzard. Roger enjoyed spending time with his family and friends, especially his grandchildren.

Roger is survived by his wife Noni of Warren, their children; Roger (Anita) Hicks of Warren, Suzy (Ted) Van Sickle of Dixon, Danny (Andrea) Hicks of Warren, and John Greenrod of Warren, ten grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren, his sister-in-law Kathy Hicks of Warren, and numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins.

He was preceded in death by his parents and his brother Dean.

Memorial services were held at 1:00 PM on Saturday March 19, 2022 at the Bartell-Leamon Funeral Home in Warren, IL. A visitation was from 11:00 AM until time of services at the funeral home on Saturday March 19. Pastor Michelle Knight officiated the service.

Cremation rites have been accorded. A memorial has been established in his memory. Condolences maybe sent to the family at http://www.leamonfh.com.

Pearl City

Mark L. Frey, 63

Mark L. Frey, 63, of Pearl City, IL passed away at Swedish American Hospital in Rockford, IL on Wednesday, February 9, 2022, with his family by his side.

Mark was born on March 23, 1958, to Warren and Marlene (Busker) Frey in Freeport, IL. He graduated from Pearl City High School in 1976. Mark married Ann Tillis in Freeport, IL on June 14, 1980. He worked most of his life in construction; he worked in Chicago for five years before coming back to the Pearl City area and working alongside his father for Frey Construction. Prior to retirement he worked for Quinn Construction.

Mark was an outdoorsman, he loved going to Northern Wisconsin fishing, he was an avid hunter, spending weeks preparing for deer hunting season. He loved doing home projects for his friends and family.

Mark is survived by his wife of 41 years, Ann, his daughter Daphne (Bob Sorgi) Frey, sister Micki (Bill) Becker, his mother-in-law LaVonne Tillis, his stepmother Lee Frey, Aunt Debi Kempel, many brothers and sisters-in-law, nieces, nephews, cousins.

He is preceded in death by his parents, father-in-law, John Tillis, his grandparents John and Francis Frey and Claus and Margaret Busker, and his Aunt Janet Saladino.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, March 26, 2022, at the Leamon Funeral Home in Lena, IL at 1:00 pm. With a visitation from 10:00 am until time of service. Pastor Michelle Knight will be officiating.

Cremation rites have been accorded. A memorial has been established in his memory.

Lena

Nancy L. Creger, 88

Nancy L. Creger, 88, of Lena, Illinois went to be with Jesus, her Lord and Savior on Thursday, March 10, 2022, surrounded by the love of her family. Nancy was born March 2, 1934, to Harry and Lillian (Yarnell) Staller in Pottsville, PA where she was named after the nurse who helped deliver her at the hospital. She married Garnett “Gary” Creger on October 13, 1954 when she left home for the first time to live in Baltimore, MD. Nancy loved being a Navy wife, and together they raised 6 children. Nancy stayed home with their children because she believed it was the most important job in the world. They moved to Chicago, IL and then McHenry, IL because of her husband’s career in the city. One of her favorite jobs was working at Riverside Chocolate Factory. In 1991 they moved to Lena, Illinois where they owned and operated the local Malt Shoppe which she felt at heart was also her ministry.

Nancy was active and enjoyed a wide range of hobbies. She was a collector of antique dolls and spent time making her own porcelain dolls. Nancy would enjoy her cross words, board games, Yahtzee, dice games, bingo, bowling, mini golf, skee-ball, painting, and gardening. Every spring, she planted marigold and striped petunia flowers in memory of her mother. Nancy loved cooking for her family and was best known for her homemade mashed potatoes. Nancy always loved animals, claiming this trait came from her grandmother. They rescued stray cats, taking many in as pets, and caring for outside strays as well. Christmas was her and her father’s favorite holiday and he gave her wonderful gifts, often early. However, her husband joked that her favorite day was always payday. While dealing with some health issues she found her talent for writing poetry and she expressed, “I love to write poetry about Jesus.” Nancy was an award-winning poet and she was published by Highland Community College, National Library of Poetry, Shoppers Guide, and Alliance Bible Church. Birth Right published a poem of hers that was distributed around the world. She was a passionate right to life advocate and volunteer for Birthright/1st Way Life Center.

As a youth she became active in the Salvation Army where her love for the Lord grew and she was proud of being asked to preach a sermon. Nancy was a longtime member of the Alliance Bible Church where she would spread the word of the Lord through her poetry. She taught Sunday school and loved helping with VBS where she was “Everyone’s Grandma.” In her bible studies with her children, she wrote the song “The Garmet” and her family performed it in church. Then she wrote the song “Radiant Children” for a youth group ministry. She was a member of the Evangelical Free Church in Lena, Illinois.

Nancy is survived by her husband Garnett “Gary” of Lena, IL; 6 children- Bonnie Schipp, Douglas (Mary) Creger, Donna Mrowka, Rhonda (John) Evans, Karen Franklin, Christine (Kevin) MacDougall; grandchildren- Shawn (Lisa) Schipp, Rachel (Nate) Rusticus, Joshua (Meghan) Schipp, Sarah Schipp, Katie Creger, Renee (Rick) Strauss, Wesley (Teagan) Mrowka, Chantelle Mrowka, Charissa Mrowka, Jeremy Evans, Kenneth Franklin, Amber Franklin, Elijah (Olivia) MacDougall, Eiley MacDougall; great-grandchildren- Julia, Ella-Grace, Harper, Emma, Makennah, Cheyanne, Emmett, Owen, Khyden, Teyah, Tynsee, Kamron, Karina, Gavin, Juliette; sister- Judy (Jack) Lusk; sister-in-law- Shirley Knutson; and many nieces and nephews.

She is preceded in death by her parents; son-in-law- Paul Schipp, Frank Mrowka, Kenneth Franklin; grandchildren- Miranda and Lillian who died at birth, Justin Franklin; 1 sister- Joan Carl; 3 brothers- Kenneth, Harry “Red”, Charles Staller.

Funeral Services were held at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 19, 2022, at the Leamon Funeral Home in Lena, IL. A visitation was from 11:00 a.m. until time of service. Officiating was Rev. Rick Bader.

Cremation rites to be accorded. In lieu of flowers a fund to help Garnett has been set up. Condolences may be sent to the family at http://www.leamonfh.com

Lake Carroll

Terrence “Terry” Derdzinski, 84

Terrence “Terry” Derdzinski, loving Husband, Father, Grandfather and Great-grandfather, passed away Sunday, February 27, 2022 at home in Lake Carroll. The last chapter of Terry’s life went just the way he would have wanted, living at home with the love of his life, Dolores.

Terry was born August 25, 1938 in Chicago, the first child of Edmund and Genevieve (Gil) Derdzinski. The 1940s and 50s were an exciting time to grow up in Chicago, and Terry saw all kinds of possibilities as he graduated from St. Ignatus High School with the Class of 1956. He attended DeVry Tech and specialized in Mechanical Engineering. On May 25, 1963, Terry married Dolores Marie Bagrowski at Blessed Agnes Catholic Church, Chicago. They celebrated fifty-eight years of marriage and raised three sons, Alan, John and Michael.

Terry’s career in technology involved working with the flip-phone, highway emergency phones, and police dispatch consoles. He worked 32 years for Motorola, moving his family from Addison, Lake In The Hills to Fox River Grove. In Addison he also worked with the Village and the Jaycees.

With the same dedication that he spent in his career, in retirement Terry spent his talents helping to make his community of Lake Carroll a better place to live. He was on the Infrastructure Committee and they called him the “Road Zar.” He was proud to be a part of the group that built the Lake Carroll Swimming Pool.

Terry and Dolores are members of St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church of Freeport. He was also a Knight of Columbus member. Wherever Terry and Dolores lived, they became part of the community and contributed to making it a better place.

Terry will be dearly missed by his wife, Dolores of Lake Carroll; thre sons, Alan (Debra) Derdzinski of Belvidere, John Derdzinski of Freeport and Michael Derdzinski of Freeport; three grandchildren, Arron (Alli) Derdzinski, Ashley Mae and Alec Derdzinski; and two great-grandchildren, Leo and Rylie Mae. Terry is preceded in death by both parents and a sister and brother-in-law, Carol Jean (Louis) Sobek.

A Funeral Mass will be held 11:00 am, Friday, April 8 at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church in Freeport, Illinois, followed by a luncheon gathering to celebrate Terry’s life.