Jennifer Ann Stock Wilkerson, 43, passed away in her home on October 1, 2018. She was the oldest child of Trudy and Greg Stock. She came into this world seven weeks early and fought a battle to survive, proving to be strong and resilient. She became the “Mother Hen” to her sister Amy and her brother Grant. She was always supervising and protecting them as they grew up. Later in life, she also loved and supported her sisters Haley Stock and Abby Stock.
Jennifer decided to become a nurse early on in high school. She had a desire to take care of people and it was indeed her calling. She was a mentor to many young women who became nurses or CNA’s. It was stated she made nursing look easy. She started her career fresh out of I.V.C.C. at the DeKalb County Jail and then moved on to the setting of doctors’ offices. Much later, she began working at the Ottawa Pavilion Nursing Home, and then transitioned to the LaSalle County Nursing Home. She was a substitute nurse for the Ottawa Elementary School District as well.
She was the classic “workaholic” taking on many extra shifts so her fellow nurses with children could have time off with their families. She was respected by many physicians and peers. Patients and residents of the nursing homes loved and adored her and she always said she treated them as she herself would want to be treated. She will leave behind a huge gaping hole in the work force. She was kind and charitable, sometimes to a fault, leaving herself short. She just wanted to help those in need.
Jennifer was preceded in death by her maternal grandmother, May Warmouth; her maternal uncles, Artillery Riewaldt and Raymond Riewaldt; and her paternal grandparents, Marilyn and Gail Stock. She is survived by her mother, Trudy Stock (Ottawa), her father Greg Stock (Marseilles), as well as her sister Amy Stock (Dan Kennedy), her brother Grant Stock (Emily Rubio), and her sisters Haley Stock and Abby Stock. She leaves behind many, many cousins and aunts and uncles. Her sweet kitty Cora will miss her as well.
Funeral Services will be held at 6 pm, Friday, October 5 at Ottawa Funeral Home, with Rev. Paul Bladen officiating. Visitation will be from 4 to 6 pm, prior to the services, at the funeral home. She will be buried at Oakwood Memorial Park.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be directed towards the family.
Jennifer has been laid to rest in the Garden of the Ten Commandments.