Celia Dickens

Celia Dickens, 99, of Sullivan passed away at 8:07 p.m. Tuesday May 21, 2019 in Aspen Creek Assisted Living, Sullivan.
Celebration of Life services will be 4:00 p.m. Wednesday June 12, 2019 in the Elim Springs Church of Jesus Christ, Sullivan with Vanessa Patient and Brigham Hagerman officiating. Visitation will be one hour before services at the church. Burial will be in the Greenhill Cemetery, Sullivan. Memorials are suggested to the Elim Springs Church of Jesus Christ or to the Moultrie County Habitat for Humanity. Online condolences may be sent to the family at reedfuneralhome.net. Arrangements by the Reed Funeral Home, Sullivan.
Celia was born November 24, 1919 in Waverly the daughter of Ira Lawrence ‘Bill’ and Anna Dora Magill Sears. She had worked at the Nifty Frock Shop when she was fourteen years old and then later worked as a bookkeeper for Community Industries, worked for Lucy Ellen Candy and then a seamstress for Felicity Fashions in Sullivan. She was a member of the Elim Springs Church of Jesus Christ and was an active member of their choir for over fifty years. She enjoyed playing the piano and had also given piano lessons for many years. Celia enjoyed the outdoors, birds, taking care of flowers and helped multiple generations with school leaf collections. Celia married R. Alan Dickens on November 24, 1951 and he preceded her in death on April 17, 2013.
Surviving are her cousins Melody Moore, Carole Moore, Mary Lou (Jim) Poland and Doug (Brenda) Moore; sisters-in-law Joan Dickens and Mary Lou Dickens; brothers-in-law Evan (Dixie) Dickens and Mark (Ann) Dickens all of Sullivan and several nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her parents, husband and brother Dr. Adrian Sears.

John Tipsword

John E. Tipsword, 83, of Bethany, passed away 9:00 a.m. Monday, May 13, 2019, at his home in Bethany.
Graveside services will be held 11:00 a.m. Wednesday, May 15, 2019, at Greenhill Cemetery, Sullivan. McMullin-Young Funeral Home, Bethany, is in care of the arrangements. Memorials may be made to The Baby Fold: 108 E. Willow St. Normal, IL 61761
John was born October 20, 1935, in Bethany, the son of Arthur Dewey and Ethel Jennie (Trulock) Tipsword. He married Marilyn L. Smith on July 27, 1957, in Sullivan at the First United Methodist Church. He was a member of the Acacia Fraternity at the University of Illinois. John was born and raised a farmer for his whole life, he enjoyed outdoor activities such as, gardening, mowing and he was an expert in finding arrowheads while looking over the side of his tractor. John was a devoted husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather; he will be dearly missed by all of his friends and family.
John is survived by his wife, Marilyn of Bethany; son, Michael John (Stefany Elen) Tipsword of Bethany; daughters, Tracy Lee (Doug) Hagen of Cambridge, IL, and Lisa R. Lee of Windsor. He is also survived by four grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
He was preceded in death by his parents, four brothers and two sisters.
Condolences may be offered to the family at www.mcmullinyoung.com

Bettie P. Davis
Bettie P. Davis, 87, of Decatur, formerly of Sullivan, was born March 24, 1932 and passed away 11:15 a.m. Monday, April 29, 2019 at Decatur Memorial Hospital, surrounded by her family.
Bettie was the daughter of Paul and Mary Wilson. She married Kenneth K. Davis, Sr. on January 14, 1955 and they enjoyed over 64 years together.
Bettie was a wonderful, caring, and loving wife, mother, grandma, and great-grandma. After her own children were grown, she raised her eldest grandson as her own son. Bettie worked for many years and retired from General Electric in Decatur. Her passions were reading and cooking for her family. Her home-made noodles and cooking were loved by everyone. Another joy of hers was shopping and rummaging with her granddaughter. Most of all, she enjoyed taking care of her family and did an amazing job. She found great pleasure in telling stories and reminiscing about the people she loved. Travelling was also something she enjoyed and visited 47 of the 50 states, but one of her favorite vacations was going shopping in Mexico. Her collections were her other passion, which included nutcrackers, placemats and rabbits. She was the sweetest, kindest, most giving woman and we are all lucky that she enriched our lives.
Bettie is survived by her husband, Kenneth K. Davis, Sr.; children, Jack (Judy) Davis, Mary (David) York, Keith Davis, and Robin (Ann) Pollock; grandchildren, Kenneth (Jennifer) Davis III, Andrea (Reuben) Solorio, Deborah Born, Erica (Josue) Mendoza, Crystal (Jesus) York-Cabrera, Jason Davis, Amy (Tony) Wingler, and Michael Pollock; great-grandchildren, Andrew, Olivia, Mason, Mary Beth, Macauley, Jase, Grayson, Landon, Jaxson, Jamison, Cody, Anthony, Kandi, and Hadley; brothers, John (Barbara) Wilson and Donald (Coral) Wilson.
Bettie was preceded in death by her parents, sons, Danny Craig and Roger Davis, sister, Emma Lou Wright, brothers, Robert Wilson and Denton Wilson, grandson, Robbie Davis, great-grandson, Joseph Solorio and daughter-in-law, Jerri Pollock.
Bettie was dearly loved and will be greatly missed by all. Please join us for Graveside services which will be held 11:30 a.m. Monday, May 6, 2019, at Greenhill Cemetery, Sullivan. Visitation will be held from 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. Monday, at McMullin-Young Funeral Home, Sullivan. Memorials may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital: 501 St Jude Place Memphis, TN 38105
Condolences may be offered to the family at www.mcmullinyoung.com

Patty Jo Burcham

Patty Jo Burcham, 85, of Sullivan passed away Tuesday, April 23, 2019 at Sullivan Health Care.
Graveside services will be held 11:00 a.m. Friday, April 26, 2019 at Camfield Cemetery, Sullivan. Visitation will be from 9:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. Friday at McMullin-Young Funeral Home, Sullivan. Memorials may be made to the First Christian Church of Sullivan or to the Sullivan Fire and Ambulance Service.
Patty was born September 19, 1933 in Sullivan, the daughter of Walter Fay and Emma (Frederick) Emel. She married Joseph “Hank” Burcham on October 30, 1953 in Lovington; he preceded her in death on January 30, 2006. She was a member of the First Christian Church of Sullivan. She loved hunting, fishing and especially searching for mushrooms.
Patty is survived by her son, Richard (Nancy) Burcham of Sullivan; grandchildren, Jill (Jeff) Johnson of Statesville, NC, Doug (Mike) Burcham of Calgary, Alberta, Canada, Brad (Cheri) Burcham of Sullivan, Jim (Debbie) Jent of Sullivan and Melanie (Luke) Byers of Sullivan; sister-in-law, Ruth Ann Drummond of Sullivan. She is also survived by many great, great-great, and great-great-great-grandchildren, and by cherished nieces and nephews including, Kent (Sharon) Emel and Cindy (Joe) Tabor.
She was preceded in death by her parents, husband, 1 daughter, Jane Jent Geiling, 2 brothers, Bill and Gareth Emel and 1 sister, Olive Carnine.
Condolences may be offered to the family at www.mcmullinyoung.com

Magalene Linville Jackson

Magalene Linville Jackson, 95, of Sullivan passed away Sunday, April 14, 2019 at her home in Sullivan.
Funeral services will be held 12:00 p.m. Tuesday, April 16, 2019 at McMullin-Young Funeral Home, Sullivan. Visitation will be held one hour before the services at the funeral home in Sullivan. Burial will be in Keller Cemetery, Lovington. Memorials may be made to the Lovington First Baptist Church.
Magalene was born August 4, 1923 in Scottsville, KY, the daughter of Oscar and Lilly (Pruitt) Witt. She married Samuel Hatten Linville in 1941; he preceded her in death in 1960. She later married Elbert Jackson in 1997; he preceded her in death in 2006. She retired from Brachs Candy Factory and was a member of the Lovington First Baptist Church. She enjoyed quilting, gardening and loved canning and cooking for her friends and family. She was also an avid bird watching enthusiast.
Magalene is survived by her son, Sam (Teri) Linville of Sullivan; daughters, Shirley Ernst of Sullivan, Darlene (Dave) McFarland of Mattoon and Patty Linville of Colorado Springs, CO. She is also survived by six grandchildren and nine great grandchildren and seven great-great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her parents four brothers and three sisters.
Condolences may be offered to the family at www.mcmullinyoung.com