BLOOMINGTON - David Ellison Hunt, 58, of Bloomington, IL, formerly ofH eyworth, IL, passed away peacefully on August 21, 2010 with hisfamily b y his side.
A celebration of life will begin at 1:00 p.m., Saturday, August 28,201 0 at the First Christian Church in Mattoon, IL with ReverendRobert Cla rk officiating. Arrangements are being handled byMitchell-Jerdan Funer al Home, 1200 Wabash Avenue, Mattoon, IL, 61938.
David Hunt was born on August 12, 1952 in Mattoon, IL. He was thefourt h of five children born to Ellison and Ruth (Baughman) Hunt.
He grew up in Mattoon, IL where he attended Mattoon High School andwas a n accomplished All-State baseball pitcher for the Green Wave. Hewent o n to attend the University of Illinois on a baseballscholarship. He ea rned his Bachelor's and Master's degrees from theUniversity of Illinoi s.
While in high school he met Shelley Kay Decker and the two marriedJune 3 , 1973, in Mattoon, while they were both still in college. Davewas an a vid University of Illinois sports fan and enjoyed attendingand watchin g the games whenever possible. He enjoyed participating inhis children 's sports teams as a coach in sports from T-ball tosoftball. In later y ears as a parent he got to spend time againtraveling to college footba ll games in Indiana, Ohio, and Michigan.
Dave was a voracious reader throughout his life. He truly enjoyed hist rips to Lake of the Ozarks and Cancun with his immediate andextended f amily. His time spent on the boats, in the pools and at thebeaches wer e some of his favorite memories. In more recent years Daveassumed the f ull time role of "Papa Dave" to his seven grandsons andtraveling to th e births, birthdays, and holidays filled most of hisfree time.
Most of Dave's professional life was spent as an Account Executive int he insurance industry where he developed many friendships thatcontinue d as he transitioned out of the industry. In later years,Dave became a t eam semi driver with his wife, which he truly enjoyedas he got to trav el extensively, meet new friends, and spend timewith his wife. Dave wi ll always be remembered as a jokester (somejokes were better than othe rs) and willing to help anybody thatneeded it.
Dave was member of the First Christian Church of Mattoon andBloomingto n, past president of the Kiwanis Club in Mattoon, andmember of the Blo omington Club. He was also a member of the AlphaKappa Lambda Fraternit y.
He is survived by his wife Shelley (Decker) Hunt; daughter, Amanda(Mar k) Solomon, of Cordova, TN; son, Wes (Kate) Hunt of Shirley, IL;and da ughter, Lindsay (Scott) Priebe of Pewaukee, WI. "Papa Dave" isalso sur vived by his seven grandsons Hunt and Wesley Solomon; Joe andEvan Hunt ; and Walker, Garrett, and Rowan Priebe. He is also survivedby his sis ters: Betty (Jim) Whetstone, Monticello, IL; Marty (Mike)Francis, Midl othian, VA; and Judy (Bud) Dunham, Terre Haute, IN; andone brother-in- law, Jim (Brenda) Dunn of Stillwell, KS. Dave waspreceded in death by h is parents and one sister Barbara Dunn.
The family would like to thank the staff of Genesis and OSF Hospicefor t heir care and assistance in Dave's last months.
In lieu of flowers please feel free to make a donation to the charityo f your choice or to the American Cancer Society - Pancreatic CancerRes earch. Please visit www.mitchell-jerdan.com to light a virtualcandle i n his honor or share a memory with his family.
Published in Journal Gazette & Times-Courier on August 24, 2010
