Mr. and Mrs. Charles Warwick

"Chuck", as he prefers to be called, grew up in Canton, Illinois and his wife Betty was raised in Keokuk, Iowa. They celebrated their 54th wedding anniversay this past year. Mr. Warwick received his undergraduate degree from Oklahoma and used to brag to the students about the "Big Red" under coach Bud Wilkinson in the 1950's when they were unbeatable.

Shortly after coming to their house on East Third Street in Minonk in 1952 Betty contacted polio. She has been in a wheelchair ever since but has remained active all of her life.

After leaving Minonk, Mr. Warwick spent three years at the University of Illinois where he earned his doctorate in Educational Administration. During that time he and his wife Betty ran a room and board operation for coeds to help finance his education. They then moved to Ithica, New York where he spent four years at Cornell University as a student service employee. From there he returned to the University of Illinois where finished his career in 1987.

While at the University of Illinois he worked in the Office of Admissions and Records and the Dean of Students Office. He said his most enjoyable experience was ending up as the Director of Foreign Students.

Charles and Betty have four children, twelve grandchildren, and four great grandchildren. Their two sons, Charlie and Mark, live in Champaign-Urbana. Their two families have a total of five children and one grandchild. Charlie is a writer for the History Survey Department at the U of I. Mark trains the mentally handicapped for jobs in the community.

Their daughter Susie, who was born while they lived in Minonk, is a professor at Ohio State University. She has seven children including three adoptees from Ethopia and China. Their granddaughter Wen Wei is blind and was rescued from a Chinese orphanage where she was sent to die with other young Chinese girls given up by their families. She has become the brightest student in her class.

The Warwick's youngest child, Joyce, lives in Iowa and teaches people how to improve their sight through eye exercises.

Mr. Warwick was the soft spoken gentle person that I remember him being and his wife Betty is bubbly and full of life. He said, "My five years in Minonk were indeed very gratifying. The students were great and the community really helped us out when my wife Betty had polio shortly after our arrival."

My observation of them is that they were a couple who were still very much in love with each other and who are enjoying their golden years in the company of their family and friends.

Charles Warwick passed away on February 26, 2010 at the age of 83.