Lester Homesley

NAME Lester "Les" L. Homesley, age 80, of Elburn, passed away following a long battle with Parkinson’s Disease at Delnor Community Hospital on February 17, 2009. Although time may have robbed him of his body, his spirit never faltered and Les is now free among the angels in heaven. BORN:He was born on July 3, 1928 the son of John and Mary Homesley in Freedom, PA. EARLY YEARS :Les’s mother made their home in several areas of Pennsylvania as he was growing up and attended local schools. Les had a strong work ethic and had to grow up quickly in a difficult environment when he began working on the Pennsylvania Railroad in a section gang at the age of thirteen. It was the time before automatic safety gates so when he wasn’t working in the section gang, one of the jobs was to sit on a perch and when a train came along he would manually lower the gates so the train could pass. When he turned sixteen he began working at a local steel mill. MARRIAGE Les met the love of his life at a local basketball game when he crossed paths with Marilyn E. Oberholtzer. They were united in marriage the day after Marilyn’s birthday on February 28, 1948 in East Palestine, OH and it was one of the best birthday gifts she ever received. RESIDENTIAL HISTORY: They began their new life together with her parents for a time before Les built their first home. This was the first time that Les could put on display his growing craftsmanship laying the foundation by hand. Although he built the house and eventually handcrafted most of the furniture, it was Marilyn who made it a home. In 1958 Les sold his home and began plans to build another one. Les and Marilyn moved back into her parent’s home until it was completed three years later. This new home on Pleasant Drive was bigger and better than his first and now held a growing family that included their ten year old son Randy. OCCUPATION / WORK HISTORY Les owned his own upholstering business but when business got slow he moved his family to St. Charles in 1965 to work as a supervisor at Howell Company, a furniture company located on the Fox River. Due to the strained economy, the family never could sell their house back in Ohio so they moved back but Les continued to work in St. Charles because there was no work to be found and he commuted back and forth as time permitted. In 1966 the whole family moved back for a time until Les found work in Burlington, IA. In 1971 they came back once more and Les began taking real estate classes to become a realtor with his son. Les found enough success and became a broker. He founded Homesley Real Estate in Geneva in the late 70’s, early 80’s. In the meantime, Les built his third house in 1973 on Keslinger Rd in Elburn which was later sold, though they continued to make their home in Elburn. MEMBERSHIPS In his earlier years, Les was a member of a Masonic Lodge as well as the United Presbyterian Church in East Palestine, OH. LIFE NOTES Les was a gregarious man who never found a person who didn’t become a friend. As the years passed, he expressed his creative soul through building many houses and found his creative soul through many talents including the framing, trimming, plumbing, electrical, cabinetry, as well as the masonry for many fireplaces. Les also filled his home with the most beautiful handcrafted furniture carved in his spare time and upholstered with expertise and care. Les also had a passion for gardening, a passion he passed onto his son. His garden was filled with vegetables and flowers but his specialty was tomatoes. He would grow everything from a seed and was very particular about keeping it immaculately manicured. As a young man he was heavily involved in harness racing but he also showed Hackney Ponies. Although he never had a college education, he had a PhD in the lessons of life. His "education" and lessons learned will be his legacy passed onto the next generations. SURVIVORS He now leaves his loving wife Marilyn, One son Randy (Debbie) Homesley of Elburn,Two grandchildren:Jason (Jennifer) Homesley, and their daughter Bella, of St. Charles, IL and Jennifer Dazzo and her three children, Drake, Drew, and Kamryn of DeKalb. PRECEDED He now joins his parents, three brothers, Bill, John and Albert and one sister Mae who preceded him in death. VISITATION / FUNERAL Private family services will be held and interment will occur at Oak Hill Cemetery, Geneva. MEMORIAL A memorial has been established in his name. Checks may be made to the "Les Homesley Memorial" and mailed in care of P.O. Box 66, Elburn, IL 60119. Tributes and memories may also be forwarded to the family at the same address or through www.conleycare.com.

No Public Services

Private family commital services