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CHARLESTON – William “Bill” Leland Hall Jr., politician and business owner, died Sunday, Jan. 16, 2011, at his Charleston home. Mr. Hall, 64, died as a result of heart failure.
Mr. Hall was employed by the Illinois Secretary of State’s Department of Motor Vehicles in Charleston, and taught classes at Lake Land College, Mattoon. Until his death, Mr. Hall remained active in local politics with The Democratic Party of Coles County, and served his community for 16 years as the Charleston Township clerk.
He was a U.S. Army veteran of the Vietnam War, based in Pleiku, Vietnam, the primary terminus of the military supply logistics corridor extending westward. Mr. Hall served from June 19, 1969, to Dec. 24, 1970.
Mr. Hall was born Jan. 29, 1946, in Charleston, the son of the late William Leland Hall Sr. and Mary (Lanman) Hall.
He attended the lab school on the current Eastern Illinois University campus before enrolling at Charleston High School.
Mr. Hall was elected to the CHS Student Council and ran track for the Trojans and hall of fame coach Merv Baker. Following his graduation from CHS in 1964, Mr. Hall attended the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana, where he joined the Delta Chi fraternity. He graduated from the University of Illinois with a Bachelor of Political Science degree in 1968. Delta Chi remained an integral part of his life even after graduating, as he served as an adviser, and was on the board for the University of Illinois’ Delta Chi Chapter. He also assisted in the founding of Eastern Illinois University’s Delta Chi Chapter.
Upon graduation from Illinois, Mr. Hall taught at East Mecklenburg High School, Charlotte, N.C., while working on his master’s degree from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. He earned his master’s degree in history education.
He later taught in Illinois at Rock Island High School as well as Aledo High School, where he was a member of the coaching staff on Aledo’s 1975 football team that qualified for the IHSA playoffs. Mr. Hall returned to Charleston in 1977, where he worked at the family business, Leland Hall Real Estate and Insurance. He soon met his future wife, Kris (Walton) Hall. They were married June 13, 1981, at First Christian Church, Charleston.
Mr. Hall and his wife were longtime season ticket holders for University of Illinois football and men’s basketball teams.
They also enjoyed attending a variety of athletic events at Eastern Illinois University. Mr. Hall was at one time the president of the EIU Panther Club sports boosters. Before long, their children consumed their time, as they never missed their children’s athletic events or musical performances. Mr. Hall coached his children at nearly every level of soccer in the Charleston Soccer League. He also organized and did the broadcasting himself, so that Charleston High School soccer games could be heard on WEIC radio around the turn of the century.
Mr. Hall sold the family business in 2001, and began working for the Illinois Department of Motor Vehicles. He began teaching history at Lake Land College shortly thereafter.
Mr. Hall’s full life also included membership in the Charleston Veterans of Foreign Wars and the Rotary Club of Charleston, as well as the Alumni associations at the University of Illinois and the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.
He assisted in the formation of the Charleston Community Band in 1978; spent 33 years judging the Illinois History Fair’s state competition; and was president of the Coles County Historical Society in 1983.
Mr. Hall also was a longtime member of the former First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), at the corner of Fourth and Jackson streets in Charleston.
Survivors include his wife; his three children, Erik Hall of Spring Valley, Betsy Hall of Carbondale, and Kevin Hall of Peoria; his sister, Cathy (Hall) Koesler and her children, Ryan Koesler and Corie Koesler, all of Sterling; and Jan (Hall) Ernst, former wife of the late William Leland Hall Sr.
Visitation for family and friends will be from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Adams Funeral Chapel, 2330 Shawnee Drive, Charleston.
Funeral services, honoring and celebrating his life, will be at 11 a.m. Friday at the funeral chapel. Burial, with military honors conducted by Charleston VFW Paul McVey Post 1592, will be at Roselawn Cemetery, Charleston.
Memorial contributions in his honor may be made to Charleston High School Athletic Department.
Gifts may be left on the memorial table at the visitation or services, or may be mailed to Adams Funeral Chapel, 2330 Shawnee Drive, Charleston, IL 61920.