Harold Heilig

Harold Earl "Doc" Heilig, 83, of Pulaski, Ill., died Sunday, Oct. 5, 2008, at the Lutheran Home in Cape Girardeau.

Heilig was born in Pulaski on Dec. 3, 1924, son of the late Warren William Heilig Sr., and Edna Earl (Hennington) Heilig.

Mr. Heilig was a World War II Navy veteran; a member and Elder of the Pulaski Christian Church; charter and lifetime member of the VFW Post No. 8891 of Mounds, Ill.; charter member of the American Legion Post No. 178, Villa Ridge, Ill.; charter member and past secretary of the Pulaski County Fair Association; and member of the Caledonia Masonic Lodge No. 47 AF/AM, Olive Branch, Ill.

Heilig worked at the Frank Roberts Blacksmith Shop in Pulaski, later becoming a partner of the Heilig Bros. Fertilizer Services; he went on to a partnership of the Heilig Bros. Ace Hardware Store in Pulaski, and retired as a farmer.

Survivors includes his wife, Peggy (Parker) Heilig, of Pulaski; three daughters, Teresa (Dave) Cheuvront of Eugene, Ore., Paula Jo "PJ" Heilig of Murray, Ky., and Donna Jean Heilig, of Pulaski; a stepdaughter, Vicki (Gene) Prokopf of Jackson; a stepson, Keith Kerr of Villa Ridge; two sisters, Virginia Thurston of Pulaski and Sarah Taake of Ullin, Ill.; four grandchildren, Nicola (Andy) Howard, Jeremy (LaShandra) Cheuvront, Kyle (Samantha) Parker, Wyatt Dagla Severs; three step-grandchildren, Lia Prokopf, Cheyenne Kerr and Howard Bradley Cale; five great-grandchildren, Madeline Annette Howard, Hannah and Addyson Kate Parker, Savannah Parker and Howard Bradley Coleman; two sisters-in-law, Lorene Heilig and Betty (Bob) Reynolds, all of Pulaski; and several nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents, his first wife, Mildred R. (Schnaare) Heilig, on Feb. 12, 1973; his brother, Warren William "Bill" Heilig Jr., Nov. 17, 1981, and by a son-in-law, Richard Dean "Rick" Parker, on March 28, 1981.

Friends may call from 5 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at Jones Funeral Home in Villa Ridge, Ill. Masonic services will be 7 p.m. by members of the Caledonia Masonic Lodge of Olive Branch. Visitation will move to Pulaski Christian Church at noon Thursday, and services will be at 1 p.m. at the church, with Dave Cheuvront officiating. Interment will follow in the Green Lawn Memorial Gardens in Villa Ridge, Ill., with full military honors given by members of the Pulaski Co. VFW Post No. 8891, Mounds, Cairo VFW Post No. 2649, and the American Legion Post No. 178, Villa Ridge.

Expressions of sympathy may take the form of memorials to the Pulaski Christian Church, c/o Mr. Danny Thurston, 819 Sandusky Road, Pulaski, Ill. 62976, or to the American Heart Association, Greater Midwest Affiliate, Memorial & Tributes, 3816 Paysphere Circle, Chicago, Ill., 60674, in memory of Harold E. Heilig.