William A. Luther, 83, of Ottawa, died Sunday, August 3, 2014 at OSF St. Elizabeth Medical Center in Ottawa surrounded by his loving family.
Funeral services will be at 10:30 AM Thursday, August 7, 2014 at Epworth United Methodist Church, 627 Gentleman Road, Ottawa with Pastor Nancy Rethford and Pastor Rich Fassig, co-officiating. Burial will be in Oakwood Memorial Park in Ottawa with full military honors. Visitation will be from 4:00 – 7:00 PM Wednesday at the Ottawa Funeral Home, 1111 LaSalle Street, Ottawa.
Born April 7, 1931 in Collinsville he was the son of Durward B. and Thelma Mae (Laythrop) Luther. He was united in marriage to Linda Jane Murphey on October 21, 1950 at Christ Episcopal Church in Collinsville.
A 1949 graduate of Collinsville High School, Bill enlisted in the Illinois National Guard in 1948 and served until 1951 when he joined the United States Marine Corps. He served in the Marines during the Korean Conflict and was discharged in 1953. He attended University of Miami where he received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Education in 1956. He later attended and graduated from Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville in 1964 where he attained his Master’s Degree in Liberal Arts. He was in the first graduating class of the Edwardsville Campus. He taught English at New Athens High School from 1960-1962. He moved to Ottawa in 1962 and began teaching English at Streator Township High School. Throughout his years at Streator he also taught Speech and Dramatics and served as the Speech Team Coach, Drama coach and auditorium manager until his retirement in 1993.
Bill was a member of Epworth United Methodist Church for over 50 years. He was an avid Chicago White Sox fan and enjoyed watching professional sports on TV. He took several trips to London, England with his students and toured the theaters there. He enjoyed working in his yard and playing cards with friends. His passion and love for animals didn’t go unnoticed especially with his many canine and feline companions throughout the years. He was honored by his former students on different occasions for his love and dedication to his profession. Even after retirement many of his former students kept in touch with him. During his career as a teacher he was never known so much as Mr. Luther but fondly as “Pops” by many of his students.
William is laid to rest in the Garden of Psalms.
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