Ross E Hildreth

Ross Eugene Hildreth, 95, formerly of Fairbury, Illinois, passed away on October 11, 2017 in Bella Vista, Arkansas. He was born on July 4, 1922 in Fairbury to the late Delbert Ross and Chloe (Fugate) Hildreth. He was the loving husband of the late Mary M. Chriss, whom he married on April 2, 1966.

Ross grew up in Fairbury and worked on the farm with his Dad. He went to the Bee Hive Grade School and graduated from Fairbury Township High School. He was active in 4-H showing Hampshire Sheep, and he showed beef cattle at the Chicago Stock Yards. He ran the Lodemia Elevator grain and feed unit, was the Manager of Honegger Feed and Farm Store, and worked at the main office in public relations and in sales for Honegger Building Division. He then moved to Huskee Built Building Sales Division of Tractor Supply and retired from the Tip-Pax Egg Plant in Indiana.

Ross was well known for his one liners and used his Dale Carnegie skills frequently. He never met a stranger, was a master at fixing most anything and finding a use for everything. He loved cooking, working in the yard, and at his workbench. He was also a master at making lemonade out of lemons. He assured us that the fireworks were in honor of his birthday every 4th of July and was affectionately known as “the fizzled out firecracker”. He will most surely be missed.

He was preceded in death by his beloved daughter, Susan Clary, his parents, and his wife, Margaret.

Ross is survived by his daughter, Barbara (Dale) Nunemaker of Bloomington, Illinois; stepson, Michael (Bonnie) Chriss of Bella Vista; stepdaughter, Cathy (George) Poffenberger of Portage, Wisconsin; five grandchildren; and 7 great-grandchildren.

A memorial service will be on Saturday, October 28, 2017 at 1:00pm at the Presbyterian Church of Bella Vista.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Bella Vista Courtesy Van, www.bellavistacourtesyvan.com or the Presbyterian Church of Bella Vista, www.pcbv.org.