A Navy veteran, serving from 1948 to 1950 EAST PEORIA, Ill.–Delbert L. Tellor, 79, of East Peoria, Ill., died at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2008, at Timber Creek Rehabilitation and Health Care in Pekin.
He was born Jan. 2, 1929, in Union County, Ill., to Clarence H. and Mabel A. (Bittle) Tellor. He married Charlene Turner on April 27, 1952, in Squires, Mo.
Surviving are his wife, Charlene Tellor of East Peoria; two daughters, Debra (David) Shanks of Eureka and Cynthia (Guy) Sandy of Dunlap; two sons, Daniel (Laura) Tellor of Sarasota, Fla., and David (Diana) Tellor of Morton; and eight grandchildren, Benjamin Sandy, Jeremy Tellor, Kyle Tellor, Matthew Tellor, Chelsea and Ashley Shanks, Kaitlyn Tellor and Bethany Sandy.
He was preceded in death by his parents; one granddaughter, Anne-Marie Sandy; one brother, Carl Tellor, and one sister, Irene Rafferty.
He was a Navy veteran, serving from 1948 to 1950, and attended Southern Illinois University in Carbondale.
Delbert worked as an inspector and analyst at Caterpillar Inc. in East Peoria, retiring on July 1, 1991, after 41 years of service.
He was a member of the First Baptist Church of Morton; the Izaak Walton League of America and United Auto Workers Local 974 in East Peoria.
He was a Little League and Pony League baseball coach in the 1960s and 1970s.
Services were held at 10 a.m. Monday, Dec. 22, at the First Baptist Church of Morton with First Baptist Church ministers officiating. Visitation was from 5-7 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 21, at Knapp-Johnson Funeral Home in Morton, and from 9-9:45 a.m. Monday at the church. Burial was at Hirstein Cemetery in Morton, where full military rites were conducted by the United States Navy and the Tazewell Military Rites Team.
Memorials may be made to the First Baptist Church of Morton, 900 E. Jefferson St., Morton, IL 61550, or to Easter Seals, 507 E. Armstrong Ave., Peoria, IL 61603.
Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.knapp johnson.com.
