C. Dean Cannon

Dean Cannon of Fithian passed away on Thursday, January 19. He was 83. Carol Dean Cannon was born Nov. 16, 1933 at Lakeview Hospital in Danville, Ill., the son of Marion and Marjorie (Harden) Cannon, who preceded him. His brother Richard "Dick" Cannon also preceded him. Dean married Mary Beth Baird on November 1, 1953 in Fithian. She survives. Also surviving are two sons Brad (Jeanie) Cannon of Fithian and Brian Cannon of Irvine, Calif, his sister Diane (Cannon) Lane, and numerous nieces and nephews. Dean grew up in Fithian, briefly living on a farm northwest of Fairmount. While growing up, Dean had many fun and memorable experiences, such as setting pins on the bowling lane in the Harden Ford dealership in Fithian, ice skating on frozen ponds, attending Fithian's outdoor showing of movies on Main Street, and working for Gritten's Hardware in Fithian. Dean worked many years for Connor Company, first on South Neil Street in Champaign, then becoming manager of the Urbana branch on South Poplar Street, then manager of the North Lincoln Avenue branch, and later manager of the branch in Danville. Dean retired from Connor Company in 1999. Dean attended Fithian and Fairmount area schools. Later, he attended North Central High School in Phoenix, Ariz. for two years and graduated from Oakwood Township High School in 1952. While living in Phoenix, he purchased young horses and "broke" them to be led with a lead rope and then sold them. When he was teenager, Dean recovered from having meningitis and typhoid fever at the same time. Dean was a soldier in the National Guard and later in the U.S. Army, serving in the Washington D.C. area, helping with the set up for the inauguration of President Dwight Eisenhower, and at West Point, New York at the United States Military Academy. where he worked with a group of engineers building training facilities to be used by the Cadets attending West Point. While in New York, Dean enjoyed swimming with their boxer dog, Tricker, in a lake. During his training at Fort Leonard Wood, Mo., Dean was instructed in the climbing of tall poles. While stationed at Fort Belvoir, Va., his unit did work at AP Hill building pontoon bridges. During his time there, he contracted pneumonia twice. Dean volunteered to serve as a test subject for experiments in a research program at Army Chemical Center, Maryland. Dean received a letter of commendation for serving his country above and beyond the call of duty. Dean owned many horses through the years and as a teenager rode horses down country roads with Mary Beth, whom he married. They later had a matched pair of ponies named Star and Dust, and Dean had a big beautiful red horse with white stockings named Red that he rode in the Fithian Centennial parade in September 1970 next to his son Brian who was riding his Shetland pony, Beauty, as they led Dean's father, Marion, and mother, Marjorie, who drove their covered wagon pulled by a team of mules. Riding in the covered wagon was Dean's son Brad. For years Dean enjoyed pheasant and quail hunting with his German Shorthair pointers Toby, and later, Jake. He enjoyed making home improvements, working in the yard, repairing and maintaining cars, and tinkering in the garage. He enjoyed having breakfast with Mary Beth at local restaurants. He also liked mushroom hunting. Through the years, Dean owned and sold, or traded, many interesting vehicles including a black 1955 Ford Thunderbird, a blue 1941 Mercury, a gold Willys Jeep, a red 1986 Corvette convertible, an orange Jeep Wrangler, two dune buggies, and a green six-wheel ATV. Dean served on a pit crew in the Indianapolis 500 for a few years, helping refuel the Hoffman Racing owned Indy car driven by his cousin Larry "Boom Boom" Cannon of Oakwood. He also fastened the safety belts after the driver climbed into the cockpit of the Indy car. In earlier years, Dean had helped Larry with his open-wheel sprint car in the pit area at dirt tracks in the Midwest. Dean also liked watching his cousin Steve Cannon drive race cars. Dean remained a fan of auto racing for the rest of his life. He especially enjoyed watching open-wheel sprint and midget racing. He also liked watching Indy car and NASCAR racing. Dean was also a fan of Illini football and basketball. In the early 1980s, Dean was a Fithian town board member. For some years, he served as a volunteer fireman on Fithian's fire department. Dean was a beloved husband and father. He was loved by his family and many people in the area. Dean was a member of Fithian United Methodist Church. Visitation will be at Sunset's Oakwood Chapel 105 E. South Main St, Oakwood, IL on Monday January 23, 2017 from 3-7pm. Funeral services will be on Wednesday January 24,2017at 1:00pm at Sunset's Oakwood Chapel. Rev. Lee Legg will officiate. Burial will be in Stearn's Cemetery, Fithian. Donations or memorials may be made to Fithian United Methodist Church.

Visitation Jan 23, 2017 Monday, 3:00 PM - 7:00 PM Sunset's Oakwood Funeral Chapel 105 E. South Main Street Oakwood, IL 61858 Service Jan 24, 2017 Tuesday, 1:00 PM Sunset's Oakwood Funeral Chapel 105 E. South Main Street Oakwood, IL 61858 Final Resting Place Stearns Cemetery 3131 e 1800 north road Fithian, IL 61844