Michael Kent Meade Obituary (1945

Michael Kent Meade,75 of Girard, passed away on Wednesday, September 30, 2020 at St. John's Hospital in Springfield, Il. He was born in Virden, Il on June 8, 1945 to James and Mary Meade. Mike graduated Girard High School with the Class of 1963 and began working at Jacksonville State Hospital. when he purchased his BRAND NEW 64 RED CHEVY IMPALA. He started working for State of Illinois. During this time, he had also joined the Air National Guard where he became an aircraft mechanic on his favorite plane, the Gooney Bird, aka the C 47. And then he began dating his future wife. Shirley! They married in 1967. Their beautiful daughter, Michelle, was born to them in 1969, and Mike had to race the stork to get to the hospital from his summer camp in Wisconsin. But he made it. He became a bricklayer through Evans Mason Brick Layer, Apprentice Program, eventually working for Pulliam Masonry til he retired in 2005. He was involved with many of the larger brick buildings in Springfield incl, the Sangamon Auditorium and the Forum 30, now known as the Hilton. But the jobs he was most proud of were the 5th Street Florist and the round window at the top of the Crown Plaza. In the meantime, he and Shirley did a lot of traveling, went to antique tractor pulls and grandkids ball games. In recent years, he bought his own garden pulling tractor, with his son-in-law Terry! His biggest desire was to see that tractor pull 300 ft, making it on his final pull in 2019! When the great-grandkids came along, he thought they were pretty special too. He was preceded in death by his parents, James and Mary Meade and his daughter, Michelle Meade Pratt. He is survived by his wife, Shirley Meade; grandchildren, Mary King and Aaron King; Great-grandchildren, Elizabeth Hopping and Chaz Pratt and his son-in-law, Terry Pratt as well as many other extended family and friends. Visitation will be held Saturday, October 10, 2020 from 10:00 - 11:00 a.m. with a service to follow at 11:00 a.m. at Church of the Brethren in Virden, IL. Contributions can be made to Girard Food Bank & Girard Ambulance. The Airsman-Calvert Funeral Home in Virden is in charge of arrangements. Condolences may be left online at www.airsmancalvert.com.+