Norman H. Laconte

Norman H. LaConte, age 81, of Chillicothe passed away, unexpectedly, on Friday, April 22, 2022 at his residence. Norm was born on February 26, 1941, in Roanoke, IL, to Wilmer and Gladys (Stechman) LaConte. He was previously married to Patricia (Finn) LaConte and is survived by their daughter, Lisa LaConte (Donald Filkins) of Dunlap. Norm is also survived by his brothers, Jerry LaConte of Washington and Terry (Joan) LaConte of East Peoria and their families.

Norm was raised in Eureka, IL and graduated from Bradley University where he studied accounting. He received his MBA from the University of Illinois. He started work with the firm of Gauger & Diehl in Peoria where he performed health care auditing and accounting. He then joined Proctor Community Hospital in 1965 as the Comptroller working to restructure the organization and its financial systems to accommodate the government’s new Medicare program. He became the President and CEO in 1979 and served in that capacity until his retirement in 2008. He guided the hospital through various strategic reorganizations enabling the creation of new entities such as Proctor Health Care Foundation, Belcrest Services, Ltd., Proctor First Care units, Proctor Health Systems and Health Plus.

Norm served on numerous boards including the Illinois Hospital Association, Illinois Provider Trust, Physicians Insurance Company, Creve Coeur Club, Country Club of Peoria and was a member of the Peoria Area Economic Development Council. He was elected a Fellow in the American College of Health Care Executives and in 2000 was given Bradley’s Outstanding Accounting Alumnus Award.

Outside of his career, Norm was passionate about aviation and classic cars, especially Corvettes. His love of flying began when he served in the Air Force Reserve and the Illinois Air National Guard. He enjoyed owning various planes and maintained his pilot’s license until his death. His love of cars started when he was still in high school and it evolved with a focus on restoration of Corvettes and building classic Chevys, giving them a traditional look with the addition of modern components. He shared his car hobby with his daughter and they spent countless hours together in the garage.

Norm was an animal lover, growing up with horses and the family dog. He continued to enjoy having horses, dogs and cats at his home and had a special love for border collies.

Cremation rites have been accorded. A memorial visitation will be Wednesday, May 4, 2022 from 3 to 4:30 with a brief memorial service at 4:30 p.m. at the Davison-Fulton Woolsey-Wilton Funeral Home in Peoria.

Memorials may be made to the Wheels O’ Time Museum, Dunlap www.wheelsotime.org , Clancy’s Dream Border Collie Rescue www.clancysdream.org, Come Bye Border Collie Rescue www.comebyerescue.org , or EP!C www.epicci.org