Michael F. Whelan
Michael F. Whelan, 64, of Barnhart, Mo., and formerly of Cobden, died peacefully at Mercy Hospital South in St. Louis on April 22, 2024, after a lengthy battle with cancer-related complications.
He was born on Sept. 14, 1959, in Chicago, the son of James and Florence Jones Whelan.
As the youngest of three boys, Mike was raised by an aunt and uncle in Herrin. He graduated from Herrin High School in 1977.
Shortly after graduating, he joined the U.S. Navy. Over his naval career as a damage controlman, he got to see the world and was a highly decorated sailor.
In 1991, he married his beloved Elizabeth, and they spent the next 33 years having all sorts of interesting adventures together.
Mike retired from the Navy in 2000 after 20 years of service and went about furthering his education, graduating in 2004 with a bachelor’s degree in paralegal studies from Southern Illinois University Carbondale. He worked in the legal, financial and security sectors until his retirement in 2019.
He enjoyed painting, cooking, camping, traveling, DIY projects, Cubs baseball, learning and trying new things and his dogs.
He is survived by his loving and dedicated wife, Elizabeth; his older brother, Frank; nieces Heather and Amber; and two step-kids, Laura (Matthew) and John. He was preceded in death by his parents and his oldest brother, Thomas.
He will be remembered as a soft-spoken, intensely private, fiercely persistent, hardworking, loyal, kind and generous man with an unquenchable thirst for knowledge. He will be terribly missed.
Funeral services for Michael Whelan were at 1 p.m. Friday, April 26, at Rendleman & Hileman Funeral Home in Anna, with Bill Littrell officiating. Interment followed in the Cobden Cemetery.
Military funeral honors were conducted at the cemetery by Carroll P. Foster Post No. 3455 of the VFW and the U.S. Navy honors team.
Memorials can be made to the ASPCA. To visit his memorial page and to leave online condolences for his family, visit the Rendleman & Hileman Funeral Home website at rendlemanhilemanfh.com.
Rendleman & Hileman Funeral Home in Anna was in charge of arrangements.