Ray Douglas Weeder

WEEDER, MALESKY, WARKENTIEN

Posted By: Ken Wright (email)
Date: 3/24/2021 at 11:36:26

It is with heavy heart that we announce that Ray Douglas Weeder (Doug please) has reached the end of his earthly journey. His voice has fallen silent and we now hear only echoes of his love. Doug was born of humble beginnings to John Weeder, a coal miner from Fancy Hill, PA., and Helen Malesky-Weeder his loving mother. His father was a man who lived his values while his mother spoke her simple truths. Doug’s youth was spent exploring the woods, picking berries and playing baseball with his younger brother Robert (Bob) while being the protective big brother to sisters Mary Jane and Lee Ann. By sheer grit and determination his father lifted his family from the suffocating privation that is a coal town and migrated to Chicago during the Second World War. The first in his family to know the achievement of a college degree and driven by his passion to develop the lives of children and Doug made education his life’s mission. He would later go on to attain a Masters Degree in Education in order to provide his unique gift to an even greater circle of children. It was at Northern Illinois University that Doug met and courted Linda Warkentien. In 1958 they were married in Linda’s hometown of Harvard, Illinois. They started their family with Michael John born in 1959 followed two years later by Debra Ann and four years hence Steven Todd. Our family enjoyed many camping trips where Doug taught the attraction and wonder of this natural world. Later, we enjoyed the serene beauty of a cabin on a lake in Wisconsin. Grandchildren Kevin and Angelica (Michael and Eileen Weeder), Luke, Avery and Seth (Debra and Andrew Harmon), and Bradley and Nathan (Steven and Libby Weeder) sat at the feet of this thoughtful man, learning lessons taught by comedic stories, and tragic tales of caution. He ultimately imparted the lesson of life-long learning through his example. Doug was happiest sitting at the head of the holiday dinner table, reflecting on the meaning of family on those special days. You may be one of the thousands of children from the West Chicago School District that have known his gentle and caring touch. He shared his passion for our Democracy while he taught the most valuable of lesson – the beauty that is our Constitution. You may be one of the children of The Larkin Center who have known the dignity he afforded to all as he gloried in their achievement. You may be one of the dozens of close friends from his church families, St. Mathews United Church of Christ in Wheaton, Geneva Unitarian Universalist Church or most recently the Unitarian Universalist Church of Stockton. You may have known him as he accompanied Linda in her many activities at Horsepower Farm, the Dubuque Symphony League, Safe Haven Animal Shelter or the League of Women Voters. You may have known him by his charitable works, volunteering for the Red Cross disaster relief, Habitat for Humanity, or the Food Pantry in Galena. You may have met him on the golf course. If you were lucky you played with him and if not against, but always a fun round with great banter and good-natured ribbing. You may have met him, but went un-introduced, the gracious man with a quick smile, a kind word, a joke, an understanding ear. For you that have been touched by this man, as a tribute he would implore you to go out and perform an act of kindness for the ones you love, or better for a stranger, a person not of your village, for they are also your brothers and sisters. For Doug, his heart and his mind have always been one. He believed it is not enough to be good; you must do good. In lieu of flowers, please make a donate to the Galena Food Pantry or the Southern Poverty Law Center. A Celebration of Life will be held in early summer. Special thanks to Dr. Vandigo, the staff at Mercy One Hospital, with special thanks to Dr. Little, and Doug’s care team from Hospice of Dubuque.