Daniel "Dan" R. Sperry Obituary (1928 - 2020)

Daniel "Dan" R. Sperry, 91 of Normal, passed away on Saturday, April 11, 2020 at his daughter's home in Bloomington with his family by his side. A private family burial will be held at East Lawn Memorial Gardens, Bloomington with Rev. Traig Whittaker officiating. In lieu of flowers the family suggests memorials to be made to The Evenglow Lodge, 215 E. Washington Street, Pontiac, IL 61764 or to the Prairie Aviation Museum, 2929 E. Empire Street, Bloomington, IL 61704. Beck Memorial Home is in charge of arrangements. Dan was born on October 16, 1928 in Batavia, Illinois to Frank Earl and Elsie Jane Banks Sperry. He married M. Irene Hubbs on February 24, 1952 in Bloomington. She preceded him in death on January 24, 1997. He later married O. Gerada Fonger on August 1, 1998 in Bloomington. She preceded him in death on December 23, 2019. Dan is survived by his children, Linda Sue (Gary) Fillingham, Bloomington; Carol Jean (Steve) Kant, Bloomington; Mark Daniel (Laurel) Sperry, Normal; and Judy Kay (Mark) Hovren, Bloomington. Also surviving are his eight grandchildren, Yale (Emily) Fillingham, Chase (Kari) Fillingham, Alexis (A.J.) Kalitzky, Austin (Doug) Herring, Tyler (Emma) Sperry, Courtney Sperry, Emily (Dan) Breazeale, and Sara Hovren; 11 great grandchildren, Rose Fillingham, Willa Fillingham, Hunter Fillingham, Kallen Fillingham, Aubrey Kalitzky, Jonah Kalitzky, Emerson Kalitzky, Kate Kalitzky, Trae Herring, Nash Herring and Connor Sperry along with 2 special nephews, Forrest (Carla) Wilson and John (Judy) Wilson. He is preceded in death by his parents and three sisters, Emma Lee Sperry, Bertha-Mae Wilson and George Jean Sperry. Dan's father, Frank, founded Mechanical Devices in 1914 in Aurora, Illinois manufacturing a three color inking attachment. He later expanded into manufacturing hydraulic pumps. A deal negotiated with Williams-Oil-O-Matic to machine fuel oil pumps prompted the company to move to Bloomington in 1928. After Frank's death in 1956, and attending the University of Illinois, Dan and his wife Irene expanded the company after to include production manufacturing. The company grew under Dan and Irene's ownership from a 6,000 square foot site to 20 acre on G.E. Road. He highly valued his employees and thought of them as family. Daughters Linda and Carol, and son Mark joined the company early in their lives and eventually became the third generation of management after Irene's death in 1997. Grandchildren Austin Herring and Chase Fillingham are the fourth generation to join the family business. Dan had varied interests and talents. In addition to being a skilled draftsman, Dan could design anything including devices and parts, a pop-up camping trailer, a house, and the manufacturing plant in use today. He was a talented musician who could pick up almost any instrument and play it, or teach himself to play it. Dan enjoyed authors Joseph C. Lincoln and Zane Gray that led to a collection of books by these authors. He enjoyed and played several sports in High School including football, basketball, baseball, swimming and diving. He also was a member of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers and the DeMolay. Family was also important to Dan as he enjoyed Boy Scouting with his son and grandsons, family vacations, camping, sailing, and canoeing. The family would like to extend a special thanks to The Village at Mercy Creek in Normal, OSF St. Joseph Hospital, and OSF St. Joseph Hospice. The family would like to extend an invitation to their friends, current and past employees to gather in front of Mechanical Devices on Wednesday, April 15, 2020 between 12 noon and 12:20pm to pay their respects as the funeral procession goes by.