- Visitation
Thursday, March 3, 2022
5:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Hosselton-Meridith Funeral Home, Cisne, IL
- Service
Friday, March 4, 2022
10:30 am
Elm River (Brown) Cumberland Presbyterian Church
Mt. Erie, IL
- Full Obituary
Former Cisne resident Margaret Stella (Fildes) Pryor, 90, passed away quietly on February 25th, 2022, in Papillon, Nebraska.Stella was born to James and Margaret (Shelton) Fildes on September 21st,1931, in Elm River Township near Mt. Erie, Illinois. Raised on a farm as the sixth of seven sisters, Stella graduated from Cisne High School then continued to receive her bachelor’s degree in Art Education from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.
While at Carbondale, Stella married James Pryor, started a family, and began her teaching career. With young children, Stella temporarily stepped away from teaching while following James’s career and resided in Belvidere, Jacksonville, South Roxana, and Decatur before settling down in Pekin, Illinois. Although their marriage did not last, the mutual commitment to their three children remained.
Stella resumed her teaching career at North Pekin District 102 briefly before several years with Pekin Public Schools District 108. She spent the bulk of her career teaching Art at Washington and Broadmoor Junior Highs. She maintained her interest in arts and crafts throughout her life. Her watercolor paintings are especially treasured by her family.
While in Pekin, Stella was a member of the First United Presbyterian Church and was active supporting civil rights during the 60’s and 70’s with the Tazewell County Human Relations Committee and Peoria Urban League.
Stella spent her retirement years in Cisne, Illinois where she was a member of the Elm River Cumberland Presbyterian Church and the Wayne County Retired Teachers Association, before spending her final years in Nebraska near her daughter, Vera.
Stella is survived by her daughters Vera (Michael) Mueller of Omaha, Nebraska, and Lisa (Timothy) Oltman of Pleasant Plains, Illinois; her son Darrell (Debra) Pryor of St. Paul, Missouri; six grandchildren: Jonathan (Kristina) Mueller, Timothy (Heather) Oltman, Margaret (Ryan Melchin) Oltman, Amber Pryor, Connor Pryor and Mason Pryor; granddaughter-in-law Caitlin Oltman; five great grandchildren: Hunter and Esme Oltman, Violet Oltman, Theodore Oltman, and Grace Melchin; and a brother-in-law Robert Walker of Mt. Erie, Illinois.
She was preceded in death by her parents, sisters Sylvia Marks, Lenora Walker, Mary Ferrell, Helen Walker, Ruth Wisner, and Lyla Gillard and a grandson Sgt. Paul James Oltman USMC.
Visitation: 5-7PM, Thursday March 3, 2022, at Hosselton-Meridith Funeral Home, Cisne, IL
Funeral Service: 10:30AM Friday, March 4, 2022, at Elm River (Brown) Cumberland Presbyterian Church near Mt. Erie, IL
Interment: Brown Cemetery near Mt. Erie, IL
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be given to Elm River Cumberland Presbyterian Church or Alzheimer’s Association and will be accepted at the funeral home or church
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared with the family at www.meridithfuneralhome.com.
Hosselton-Meridith Funeral Home; Cisne, IL
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