Ralph Clyde McKinzie (1990)

MCKENZIE, MCKINZIE, GLOVER

Posted By: Judy Wight Branson (email)
Date: 1/29/2011 at 10:20:43

The Pantagraph, Bloomington, Illinois
December 8, 1990, page B7

EUREKA - Ralph "Mac" McKinzie, 96, former head football coach at Eureka College, died at 4 p.m. yesterday (Dec. 7, 1990) at Maple Lawn Nursing Home, where he had been a resident the past 5 years. A story is in Sports, page B1.

His funeral will be at 10:30 a.m. Monday at Eureka Christian Church, the Rev. Marvin Cheney officiating. Burial will be in Augusta Cemetery, Augusta.

A memorial service will be at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday in the Assembly Room at Maple Lawn Nursing Home, the Rev. Robert Harnish officiating.
Visitation will be from 2 to 4 p.m. and 6 to 8 p.m. Sunday at Otto-Argo Funeral Home, Eureka, and one hour before the service at the church.

He was born Oct. 1, 1894, in Winterset, Iowa, a son of John W. and Sara M. Brassfield McKinzie. He married Helen Elizabeth Coffman Dec. 23, 1922, in Galesburg. She died March 2, 1976.

Surviving are one son, James, Sterling; one sister, Mary Glover, Blackwell, Okla.; four grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by two sons, one brother and one sister.

In 1914, Mr. McKinzie attended Oklahoma Methodist College on a football scholarship and transferred to Eureka College in 1916. From 1921 to 1938, he was head coach and athletics director at Eureka College, where he coached former President Ronald Reagan. He had also coached various sports at Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa, and at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb. His coaching talents won him many awards and honors.

He and his wife had lived in the DeKalb area for 24 years. He was a 50-year member of the American Legion in DeKalb and Eureka, and was past commander in the DeKalb post.

He also was a 50-year member of the DeKalb and Eureka Masonic lodges. He was a member of DeKalb Rotary Club and First United Methodist Church, serving as board member and Sunday school teacher. He was a veteran of World War I and a member of the E Club in Eureka. He helped in many youth scouting and sports programs in DeKalb and had been a well-known speaker at youth banquets in Eureka and DeKalb.

In 1965, he and his wife donated a year of teaching service to Piney Woods, a school for underprivileged black children near Jackson, Miss. From 1952 to 1964, he and his wife owned and operated a boys' camp in Northern Wisconsin. Most of the boys were from the DeKalb area.

Memorials may be made to the Ralph "Mac" McKinzie Scholarship at Eureka College, Eureka Christian Church or Maple Lawn Nursing
-------------------

Chicago Tribune, Chicago, Illinois
December 9, 1990, page 18

RALPH MCKENZIE, 96, REAGAN'S FOOTBALL COACH

Ralph ''Mac'' McKenzie, 96, a teacher and Ronald Reagan's one-time football coach, died Friday at the Maple Lawn Nursing Home in Eureka, Ill., where he was a resident.

Mr. McKenzie, whose career as a football and basketball coach and trainer spanned nearly seven decades, was known as the oldest active coach in America. He had been honored by several colleges and sports organizations in the last decade, and his career was the subject of an ABC television feature in 1981.

Born Oct. 1, 1894, in Winterset, Iowa, Mr. McKenzie attended Oklahoma Methodist College on a football scholarship. In 1916, he transferred to Eureka College, where he remained for several years after graduation as head football coach and athletic director beginning in 1921.

While at Eureka College, Mr. McKenzie coached former President Reagan, who graduated from the school in 1932. Reagan, who remained Mr. McKenzie's close friend, returned to Eureka College in 1980 for a visit and to address a pep rally.

Mr. McKenzie also was football coach at Wartburg College in Wartburg, Iowa, from 1937 to 1939. In 1939, Mr. McKenzie became a baseball and basketball coach at Northern Illinois University in De Kalb, where he remained until 1962. In 1963, he returned to Eureka College as a volunteer assistant football coach.

Mr. McKenzie was inducted into several halls of fame, including the Eureka College Hall of Fame in 1970; the Illinois Basketball Association's Hall of Fame in 1976; the Northern Illinois University Hall of Fame in 1982; and the Greater Peoria Area Hall of Fame in 1990.

Mr. McKenzie received the Washington Touch Down Club's Timmie Award in 1982, presented to him by Reagan. In 1987, he received the distinguished service and coaching award from McGregor Sports Foundation of Chicago.

He is survived by a son, James; a sister, Mary Glover; four grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

Visitation will be from 2 to 4 and from 6 to 8 p.m. Sunday at the Otto-Argo Funeral Home in Eureka. Services will be at 10:30 a.m. Monday at Eureka Christian Church