Glenn Earl Heck, age 98, Born 9/25/1925 in Bardolph, IL, Died 4/6/2024 in Carol Stream, IL

Glenn is survived by his wife Virginia, nee Erickson; his children, Paul Heck, Scott Heck, and Lynnaea (Chuck) Martin; his grandchildren, Roxanne (Chris) West; Aubrey (Chris) Hartman; and Braden (Stephanie) Martin; and his great-grandchildren, Adam Windham; Connor McGinness; and Chloe McGinness.

A visitation will be held at 1:00 pm, followed by a funeral service at 2:30 pm on Tuesday, April 16 at Wheaton Bible Church, 27W500 North Avenue, West Chicago, IL 60185. The service will be livestreamed through this link: Funeral Service for Glenn Heck beginning at 2:30 p.m. CDT. Burial will be held privately at Wheaton Cemetery.

First, and foremost, Glenn loved Jesus. Through prayer, Bible reading, and personal study of hundreds of books, he focused on understanding and describing the Triune nature of God. He was willing to have a conversation with anyone, anytime, anywhere about the importance of personal salvation and the blessings of God, ending most prayers with "Amen, Amen, and Amen!"

Ginnie, his wife of 71 years, 9 months, and 15 days, was a close second. They started holding hands late in 1948 (porch swings were a favorite place) and stopped 75 years later only because God called him home. Glenn and his father Ellsworth built the home Ginnie designed near Wheaton College in 1952, and they resided there (except for the Grad School Years) for 53 years. As a father he taught by example, played frequently, created fun learning experiences, and was a wise counselor ("if I were where you are, I would …") and guided through coaching rather than discipline. As a grandfather, there were no school events he wouldn't rearrange his schedule to attend and his pocket change always went into a big jar to be divided and distributed to the grandkids when it was full. As great-grandfather, he loved visits and phone calls which shared stories about what were the current important experiences in their lives. As the family patriarch, his closing blessing on most occasions and visits was "May God guard you, guide you and gift you."

Glenn loved teaching and education. He earned degrees from Wheaton College (BA); Northwestern University (MA – Counseling and Guidance); and Michigan State University (PhD – Education). He taught 8th grade at Wheaton Jr, High, became principal of Franklin Jr. High (Wheaton) and then Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction for Wheaton Public Schools. During and following Grad School he taught for the MSU extension education program and was the Dean of the Faculty for Spring Arbor College (now University). In 1967 he discovered his 'niche' and started teaching future and experienced elementary and secondary teachers at National College of Education (now National-Louis University). In his 33-year tenure at the NLU he fulfilled roles as undergraduate faculty member, graduate school faculty member, doctoral student advisor, and Sr. Vice President for Academic Affairs. Even as an administrator he never stopped teaching at least part-time.

During World War II Glenn fulfilled his duty and responsibility to the country serving as a Medical Supply Sergeant on the Island of Saipan. Glenn loved to travel. Starting with a cross country camping trip accompanied by his younger brother, their bed on top of a Model A, he visited all 50 states sometime during his life. He added Canada, the Holy land, and several countries in Europe with Ginnie. There was not a single brown historical marker that he encountered on his travels that he didn't stop and read; most rated a picture. His favorite snacks were peanut butter and jelly on bread, a small bowl of cereal before bed and root beer floats. He usually carried his harmonica and always had a pocket full of colored pencils and note cards.

Through consulting and volunteer roles, Glenn was always looking for ways to help people and organizations see the 'next step' in their road to success. He wrote a book (with Marshall Shelly) titled "What Every Sunday School Worker Should Know About How Children Learn" to help lay teachers understand how best to help the little ones in their care each week learn about Jesus. He conducted seminars and lectures for many school districts to help teachers improve the teaching of history and worked on two committees with the US Department of Education. He served as an Elder two different times at the Wheaton Bible Church where he had been a member since the 1950s, and was a constant prayer partner during the move from Wheaton to West Chicago. He served as President of the Wheaton College Alumni Association, Member of the Board of Wheaton Academy, Member of the Board of Peter Deyneka Russian Ministries (now Mission Eurasia), Board Member for DuPage Heritage Gallery, Board Member for Wheaton History Center, and others. He will be remembered as a loving, cheery, likeable person who always looked for, and found, the best in others.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Covenant Living at Windsor Park Benevolent Fund , Attn: Kathy Cornell, 124 Windsor Park Drive, Carol Stream, IL 60188.