Deacon John Mock

KEWANEE — A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 11 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 15, at Saint John Paul II Parish here for Deacon John T. Mock, a permanent deacon who formerly served Kewanee parishes.

Deacon Mock died on Friday, Dec. 8, 2023, at Kewanee Care Home. He was 99.

Father Chris Haake will celebrate the funeral Mass. Visitation is scheduled from 10 to 10:45 a.m. at Rux Funeral Home, 507 S. Chestnut St., Kewanee, with recitation of the rosary at 9:30 a.m.

Burial with military rites accorded by the Kewanee Veterans Council will be in Mt. Olivet Cemetery.

Deacon Mock was born Aug. 27, 1924, in Toulon to Jennie Mock and was raised by his grandmother, Edna Jane Mock. He attended Toulon schools, graduating from high school in 1942.

He married Mildred Engel on Feb. 9, 1952, at Visitation Church in Kewanee. She died on April 22, 2015.

Deacon Mock was employed as an administrative assistant for 30 years with the Michigan Wisconsin Pipeline Co., retiring in 1983. He served in the U.S. Army in Germany during the Korean War, attaining the rank of sergeant.

Shortly after retirement, he was accepted as a member of the Diocese of Peoria’s fourth class of permanent deacons, and was ordained on May 21, 1988, by Bishop John J. Myers at St. Mary’s Cathedral in Peoria. He served both St. Mary and St. Francis of Assisi parishes in Kewanee until his retirement in 2004, but continued pastoral care activities until 2015 at the age of 90.

A member of the Knights of Columbus for more than 50 years, he was a past grand knight of Council 734 and past faithful navigator of Assembly 217. He had been the financial secretary of Council 734, and is a former Knight of the Year and diocese-wide Night of Knights honoree. He was also a member of American Legion Post 31 and life member of the VFW Post 8078 of Kewanee.

Survivors include four daughters: Teresa (Steven) Krause of Geneseo, Marie Mock of Peoria Heights, Kathleen (William) Schweikert of Golden, Missouri, and Paula Schaefer of Kewanee; nine grandchildren; 18 great-grandchildren; and a sister, Alice Lasley of Grand Junction, Colorado. In addition to his wife, he was preceded in death by a sister, Mary Jane Swank, and a brother, John King.

Memorials may be directed to Visitation School, Kewanee, or to Abilities Plus.