A man of many talents John William Ayers, 55 of Ava, formerly of Abingdon, Ill., died at 1:15 a.m. Monday, July 23, 2007, at Cox South Hospital in Springfield.
He was born to Corine Ayers on Oct. 1, 1951, in Pasadena, Calif. John was a longtime resident of Abingdon, Ill. and Phoenix, Ariz. He was a man of many talents and could fix about anything.
He worked for Abingdon Salvage for many years. He also worked as the head groundskeeper in Arizona for the Seattle Mariners, Chicago White Sox and Milwaukee Brewers training camps. He most recently was employed by Wal-Mart where he worked for four years in London, Ohio.
He married Schelia Bowman on Oct. 25, 1969. They have been married for 37 years. To their marriage, five children were born: a son, Galen Ayers, of Galesburg; four daughters, Genea, of Galesburg, Ginger, of Iowa, Desiree, of Ava, and Tessa, of Peoria, Ill. He was blessed to be the proud grandpa of 14 grandchildren, who will all miss their grandpa very much.
John was preceded in death by his mother, Corine Ayers.
A graveside service will be at 11 a.m. today (Thursday) at the Abingdon Cemetery, Abingdon, Ill. Eleanor Landon will officiate.
Local arrangements were conducted by the Clinkingbeard Funeral Home of Ava. Memorials may be made to his wife. Online condolences may also be made at www.clinkingbeardfuneralhome. com or www.h-p-w.com.
