William “Bill” Hoover, age 78 of Freeport and Thomson, Illinois died Friday, September 14, 2012 at Big Meadows Nursing Home, Savanna, Illinois. A Celebration of Life will start at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, September 22, 2012 at the Riverview Bar & Grill, Thomson and also a second Celebration of Life will be held from 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. Saturday, September 29, 2012 at the Fraternal Order of Eagles Club, Freeport. Memorials may be sent to PO Box 871, Freeport, IL 61032.
Bill was born November 23, 1933 in Mt. Carroll, Illinois, the son of Aloys and Esther (Franks) Hoover. He attended the Mt. Carroll, Milledgeville and Lanark schools. As a young man, Bill worked as a mechanic on Route 64 where he met his sweetheart, Mary, as she worked as a waitress at the same truck stop. On July 7, 1962, Bill Married Mary Lou Osbaugh near Mt. Morris, Illinois. They have celebrated 50 years of marriage.
Bill worked over thirty years as a truck driver for Matthews Distributing, retiring in 2000. He was a member of the Fraternal Order of the Eagles, Aerie 679, Freeport. He loved to support and help with the FOE kids events. Bill and Mary enjoyed the time they spent in retirement at Riverview near Thomson along the Mississippi River.
Bill is survived by his wife, Mary of Freeport; two children, Michael and Dawn; his brother, Dennis Hoover of Freeport; two sisters, Donna Haas of Monticello, Iowa and Norma (Bill) White of Freeport; and two sisters-in-law, Janet and Helen Hoover. Bill is preceded in death by both parents and three brothers, James, Richard and Frank.