Race-car monument revs up controversy in small town

ILLINOIS CITY, Ill. -- An 8-foot-tall, stainless-steel tombstone embossed with a race car has revved up a controversy in this tiny Illinois River town southwest of the Quad Cities.

The dispute has landed in the lap of the village's cemetery board, which is mulling ways to make the memorial coexist with the cemetery's more traditional grave sites.

Brothers Dennis Begyn Jr. and Jesse Begyn hand-built the massive monument as a tribute to their father, Dennis Begyn Sr., who was killed last May when he lost control of his race car at an area drag strip.

The brothers said they plan to add lights like the ones that count down the start of a drag race.

Building the tombstone provided emotional comfort in addition to creating the memorial, the brothers added.

The widow, Sandy Begyn, called the marker "a Christmas present, the last one we ever gave him."

Others, however, have complained that the towering tombstone is threatening the reverence and serenity of the cemetery.

Dana DeKeyrel told the board that the monument and the attention it has generated has attracted gawkers, including one gawker who parked a car on her grandfather's grave.

DeKeyrel's grandfather "taught us how to farm," she said, "but we didn't park a tractor there."

Public hearing held

The cemetery board sought solutions at a public hearing last week attended by more than 70 people. Most spoke in favor of the monument.

One idea board members have mentioned was moving the Begyn grave and the marker about 100 feet, to an isolated area away from other cemetery plots.

But Dennis Begyn Jr. asked the board, "Put yourself in our shoes. Would you want us to dig up your mom or dad and move them?"

The board plans to make a decision soon. The choice won't be easy, said board spokesman Lila Keller.

"When people who have nearby graves come to enjoy the peace and calm, they can't ignore that bigger-than-life presence of your dad," Keller told the family at the recent hearing. "They feel violated."

Keller added, "The board feels duty-bound to honor the trust of every person who spent money to build a plot."