She was born at home in Bartonville on Jan. 20, 1933 to Louis and Lela (Conley) Duttarer. She married Charles E. Melton on June 12, 1955 in Bartonville. He passed away Dec. 29, 1990 in Mapleton. She was also preceded in death by her parents, one grandson, Justin Dickinson, and three brothers: Jack, Tom, and Ken Duttarer.
Survivors include four children: Linda (Bill) Harmon of Pekin, Jeanie (Kevin) Glenn of Bartonville, Kathy (Tim) Neff of Bartonville, Chuck (Mary) Melton II of East Peoria, and one sister-in-law, Virginia Duttarer of Florida. She was also survived by 14 grandchildren: Scott (Heather) Harmon, Steve Harmon, Keith (Jen) McKeever, Sarah (Josh) Woods, Jason (Julie) Glenn, Melissa (Paul) Hoagland, Dreu (Tiffany) Dickinson, Chris (Luke Kohout) Neff, Erika (Lee Berryman) Dickinson, Andrew (Mindy) Neff, Tiffany (Angel) Galdamez, Chuck (Jen) Melton III, Cris (Katie) Melton, Kayla (D.J. Rogala) Melton, and 17 great-grandchildren.
Shirley was a loving mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother who cherished and always put her family first.
Shirley was a homemaker then co-founder (along with her husband) of Melton Electric from 1976 to 1990.
She was a lifelong member of Bethel Lutheran Church in Bartonville. At church she was very active in numerous committees and was involved in the church Sunday School program and served as superintendent for over 30 years. She was also a member of the Eastern Star, and was a member and past president of the Bartonville Femmes.
Visitation will be from 4 to 7 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 25, 2019 at the Davison-Fulton Bartonville Chapel. Funeral services will be Saturday, Oct. 26, 2019 at 10 a.m. at the Bethel Lutheran Church in Bartonville. Additional visitation will be one hour prior to the services on Saturday at the church.
Burial will be in Swan Lake Memory Gardens in Peoria.
Memorials may be made to the Sunday School program at the Bethel Lutheran Church, Bartonville.
You may view Shirley’s obituary online at www.davisonfultonbartonvillechapel.com
