William Collins

  William "LUMMY" Henry Collins, Jr. ,71, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, September 18, 2019 in his family home in Tremont after a twenty-one year battle with cancer. He was born November 18, 1947 in Peoria, IL the son of William Henry Collins, Sr. and Norma Jean Stetler Collins. He married Rena Sue Young on June 16, 1972 at First Assembly of God Church in Pekin. Surviving is his wife, Rena; one son Bill (Ashley) Collins of Pekin, and one daughter, Stephanie (Jerret) Batson of Edwardsville, IL. Also surviving are seven grandchildren Jayda, Olivia, Noah and Sophia Collins, Ephraim, Greydon, and Isabella Batson, sisters, Karen Hagaman, Colleen Sarnes, Angie Lippert, Janet Livingston, LeAnn Pirtle Jerry Bailey, and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, his sister, Regina Collins and his brother, Ray (Dickie) Bailey. He proudly served his country in the United States Marines from Oct. 19, 1966-May 3, 1971 and in Vietnam. He loved being a Marine and always wore his Marine Corps hats. He worked at Caterpillar in East Peoria for over 30 years and retired in 2006. He was a member of VFW post 8662 and the Tremont American Legion. He loved serving his community through cooking and fundraising. In retirement, he enjoyed fishing with friends and grandkids and working for Heartland Outdoors magazine. His grand children were the love of his life. He took them hunting for arrowheads, show them how to sort old coins and play cards. Lum and Rena traveled as often as they could. Niagara Falls was one of their favorite trips. Lum chose to donate his body to research to help others. A visitation will be on Saturday, September 21, 2019 from 4-7p.m. at Pekin First Nazarene church. A toast and celebration of life will be at Big Art's Yokel at 8:30 p.m. on Saturday, also. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Bob Michels VA Outpatient Clinic-Peoria or Hooked On Fishing Park (hookedonfishingpark.org) in honor of Lummy Collins.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of William Collins, please visit our floral store.