William A. “Bill” Lenz, age 59 of Dahinda, Illinois, died at 3:35 a.m. Wednesday, February 5, 2025, at St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Bloomington, Illinois, surrounded by family.
He was born on September 3, 1965, in Galesburg, Illinois, the son of William A. and Ruby (Lefler) Hall. He was later adopted and raised by Ruby and LeRoy Lenz. He attended and graduated from Knoxville High School in 1983, where he earned All-Conference football honors as an offensive and defensive lineman his senior year. He married Megan O’Brien in April of 1984. They divorced and he later married Jean Marie Hilton on February 27, 1989, in Scott County, Iowa.
Bill is survived by his wife Jean Lenz of Dahinda, Illinois; his mother, Ruby Lenz of Dunlap, Illinois; his children: Matthew (Lauren) Lenz of Peoria, Illinois, Joshua (Elizabeth) Lenz of Knoxville, Illinois, and Kelsey (Garett) Plue of Knoxville, Illinois; six grandchildren: Addison, Mason, Natalie, Weston, Isabelle and Hayden; two sisters: Shari (Mike) Parkinson of O’Fallon, Missouri and Shelley (Sara) Lenz of Dunlap, Illinois. He is also survived by his lifelong friend, Troy Baker, and several nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his fathers (William A Hall and LeRoy Lenz) and all maternal and paternal grandparents.
He held many positions throughout his life. Bill was a driver for Roger Brothers, a salesman for G&M Distributors, and worked at Butler Manufacturing for many years before it closed. He began an HVAC career as a Journeyman with MSI, before taking a position with DynCorp as a civilian contractor embarking on two overseas tours, one in Afghanistan and one in Iraq. He also spent many years as a volunteer on the Knoxville Fire Department.
Bill was a life-long, die hard Dallas Cowboys fan. He enjoyed fishing, cooking and mushroom hunting, but he loved nothing more than spending time with his grandchildren.
Visitation will be from 4-6 p.m. on Saturday, February 15, 2025, at the Hurd-Hendricks Funeral Homes & Crematory in Knoxville, Illinois. Memorials may be made to Hurd Hendricks to help cover the cost of the services. On-line condolences and/or expressions of sympathy may be sent through www.hurd-hendricksfuneralhome.com.