William T. Sturtevant

William T. Sturtevant, 74, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, December 2 at home surrounded by family.

William was born February 2, 1947, in Baltimore, Maryland, to Mary Jane and Charles N. Sturtevant, Jr. He leaves behind his loving wife, Terri, of Mahomet, Illinois. The two were wed in 1988 and spent 33 years caring for one another. Carrying on his example are his three surviving children, Stephanie A. Kimme (Kyle) of Sugar Grove, Illinois, Robert E. Clapper (Ali) of Mahomet, Illinois, and Melissa N. Sturtevant of Truth or Consequences, New Mexico as well as five grandchildren, Connor, Logan, and Blake Kimme and Evelyn and Samantha Clapper. Also surviving are brother Charles N. Sturtevant III (Barbara) of Wilmington, North Carolina., and sister Jane Sturtevant of Cambridge, Massachusetts as well as brothers and sisters in law, Sharon Armstrong of Sebastian, Florida, Karon Hammel of Urbana, Illinois, Chuck Woollen of Mahomet, Illinois, Debbie Walker (Rick) of China Spring, Texas and Eric Woollen (Kerry) of Midlothian, Texas.

Throughout his life Bill, as he was known, was successful at a variety of endeavors. At the age of 13 while living in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania he played the part of a young cowboy in a local television show titled "Sherriff Smith". He also participated in many sports but swimming was one in which he excelled and held records at Lorry Norrix High School in Kalamazoo, Michigan. He then attended Western Michigan University where he graduated magna cum laude in 1969 with a degree in marketing. Bill went on to receive his Master of Business Administration at Wayne State University in Detroit. After college Bill used his booming voice to broadcast play by play for Western Michigan hockey and football for several years.

From 1980 to 2004 Bill served as Vice President for Planned Giving and Trust Relations at the University of Illinois Foundation. During his time there he built what is considered by many to be one of the nations preeminent gift planning programs. Nationally recognized, Bill was a specialist in major and deferred gifts and planning solicitation strategies. He earned the Certified Financial Planner designation in 1984 and regularly assisted a variety of charitable organizations. In 1995 Bill was honored as Planned Giving Professional of the Year by Planned Giving Today. In January 2014, he was named the first recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the East Central Illinois AFP Chapter. Drawing upon his expertise, Bill authored the book The Artful Journey: Cultivating and Soliciting the Major Gift, published in 1997, which is considered a must read for those in the industry, as well as being co-author of the Moves Management Manual which was published in 2012. Charitable with his time, Bill was a member of several family foundations, which he helped establish. He was also the co-founder of the Institute of Charitable Giving, which trained fundraisers from varying charitable organizations in both the United States and Canada. The guiding tenant for Bill in his career as a fundraiser was that dedication to the best interest of his donors was the only way to achieve the objectives of the charitable organizations he served.

Bill was, most importantly, a beloved and devoted father, grandfather and husband. His family will remember his gentle nature, kind heart, and curiosity. Though having a strong work ethic, Bill also knew the importance of days well spent traveling with Terri, meeting and learning about others, and spending days with family cheering on his favorite teams. He embraced each and every day and recognized the gift of life.

A Celebration of Life service will be held on Wednesday, December 8th at 10 a.m. at New Horizon United Methodist Church, 3002 W. Bloomington Road, Champaign, IL. 61822. A Memorial Visitation will be held on Tuesday, December 7th from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. also at New Horizon United Methodist Church.

In lieu of other expressions of sympathy, memorial contributions may be made in his name to the William T. and Terri Sturtevant Scholarship Fund at the Western Michigan University Foundation, the American Cancer Society or to New Horizon United Methodist Church in Champaign, IL.

"The purpose of life is to matterto count, to stand for something, to have it make some difference that we lived at all."Leo Rosten

Please join his family in sharing memories, photos and videos on his tribute wall at www.sunsetfuneralhome.com

Cremation arrangements have been made at Sunset Funeral Home and Cremation Center 1102 Churchill Rd, Mahomet, Illinois 61853

Services Memorial Visitation Tuesday December 7, 2021 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM New Horizon United Methodist Church 3002 W Bloomington Rd. Champaign, , IL 61822 Memorial Service Wednesday December 8, 2021 10:00 AM New Horizon United Methodist Church 3002 W Bloomington Rd. Champaign, , IL 61822