[1967-12-28] Prominent Local Woman Passes Away

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Clipping from 12/28/1967

Mrs. Lucile N. Stevenson passed away at the home of her son, Wilbert, Route 4, Streator, Wednesday evening.

Services will be Saturday at 1:30 p.m. from the Park church with burial in Allen cemetery, Ransom.

Visitation will be after 4 p.m. Friday at the Elias funeral home, and until 11 a.m. Saturday when the body will be taken to the church.

Memorials may be directed to the Park church Memorial fund.

Mrs. Stevenson was born Sept. 26, 1893 in Nebraska, daughter of William A. and Alice (Brown) Needham. She married James V. Stevenson Oct. 12, 1916 in Urbana. He preceded her in death Oct. 17, 1959.

Mrs. Stevenson had resided in Streator since 1916 and was a ruling elder of Park church and taught an adult class there for many years.

She was a member of the Callere club, past president of the Illinois Home Bureau and a member of the state rural electrification committee, whose recommendations hastened the development of electric power in rural areas.

Mrs. Stevenson was the editor of a household column of the Corn Belt Farm Dailies for almost 40 years under the pen name of Hope Needham.

Upon her retirement in 1965 readers of the column donated a fund to build the "Chapel of Hope" in Rio Muni, West Africa, as a tribute to her inspiration.

She served for several years as secretary of the Allen-Otter Creek Mutual Fire Insurance Co.

Survivors include three sons, Wilbert, Streator; Ernest, Bloomington; Joseph, Fairbury; 15 grandchildren; four sisters, Mrs. Carrie Brown, Mrs. Revilo (Grace) Oliver, and Mrs. Marguerite Rarick, all of Urbana.

She was preceded in death by her husband, one daughter, Mrs. Philip (Ruth) Sidell, and one brother, Wilbert Needham.