Terry Geary

Terry "Tuffy" Geary, 64, of Springfield, passed away at 9:15 a.m. on Thursday, March 25, 2010 at Memorial Medical Center. Terry was born May 27, 1945 in Lincoln, IL, the son of Joy and Maxine Ferguson Geary. He married Patricia Graham on February 24, 1968. Terry graduated from Athens High School where he played basketball and baseball and showed hogs in 4-H. He joined The U.S. Army and was in the 344th Transporting Company during the Vietnam era. During his service in the military, Terry earned the Vietnam Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Good Conduct Medal, Marksmen Badge and Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal. Before he was employed as a heavy equipment operator in the road construction industry, he worked at Massey Ferguson and Weavers. He was a lifetime member of Operating Engineers Local 965, International Operating Engineers and is a past member of Amvets Post 61. Terry was very dedicated to his family, enjoyed listening to country music and was very laid back, but had a competitive side to him as well. He enjoyed mushroom hunting, watching Nascar, was a St. Louis Cardinals and Chicago Bears fan and loved playing cards. He is preceded in death by his parents; a brother, Ronnie Geary; a grandson; and two nephews. He is survived by his wife, Pat of Springfield; one son, Tim (Cindy) Geary of Springfield; three daughters, Michelle (Terry) Cassidy and Teresa Farley, both of Springfield and Joy (Barry) Schleyhahn of Kincaid; seven grandchildren; a brother, Jack (Stephanie) Geary of Greenview; sisters, Diane (Butch) Hawk of Mahomet, Dorothy (Gary) Johnson of Washington, IL and Judy (John) Hamilton of Springfield; and several nieces, nephews and cousins. Visitation will be held from 5:00 8:00 p.m., Tuesday, March 30, 2010 at Kirlin-Egan & Butler Funeral Home, 900 S. 6th St., Springfield. Funeral ceremony will be held at 1:00 p.m., Wednesday, March 31, 2010 at Kirlin-Egan & Butler Funeral Home, with Rev. Gloria Davis officiating. Burial will follow at Camp Butler National Cemetery with military honors provided by the U.S. Army and the Interveterans Burial Detail of Sangamon County. Memorial contributions may be made to the American Diabetes Association, 2580 Federal Drive, Suite 403, Decatur, IL 62526, Gift of Hope, 425 Spring Lake Drive, Itasca, IL 60143 or American Kidney Foundation, 6110 Executive Boulevard, Suite 1010, Rockville, MD 20852.