John R. Bagley 1937-2023
John Robert Bagley, 86, of Pekin, passed away at 9:53 a.m. Monday, July 10, 2023, at Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire, Wis.
Born June 24, 1937, in Grim Smith Hospital in Kirksville, MO., he was the son of Chester and Edna Mae (Harper) Bagley. John married Mary Laura Frings on Jan. 28, 1961, at St. Paul United Church of Christ in Pekin. She survives.
Also surviving are one nephew, John David (Rebecca) Harding of Cape Girardeau, MO.; one niece, Susan E. (Mark) Sells of Rolla, MO.; and six great-nieces and nephews. He also leaves one sister-in-law, Charlotte Cardiff of Barrington; a brother-in-law, Clyde Laier of Pekin; a niece by marriage, Becky (Mark) Beasley of Morton and their daughter.
He was preceded in death by his parents; one sister, Carolyn Ann Harding; and a sister-in-law, Bettie Laier.
John spent his childhood in Kirksville and attended public school, graduating from Kirksville High School in 1955. He was a graduate of the University of Missouri at Columbia with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Economics in 1959 and was a member of Beta Theta Pi Fraternity and Scabbard & Blade there. He was proud to hit over .400 as a freshman as part of the MU Baseball program and later had a tryout with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1960. John went on to graduate with his Juris Doctor Degree from the University of Michigan in 1962.
He was inducted into military service in the United States Army at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma, and served honorably from June of 1962 to October of 1965. He attained the rank of Captain and served in the Judge Advocate General’s Corps.
John was admitted to the Missouri Bar upon examination in 1962 and the Illinois Bar upon foreign license in 1966. He began practicing law in Pekin in November of 1965 and became a partner in the firm of Frings, Hoffman & Bagley in 1967. The firm subsequently became Bagley & Miller with the addition of Louis E. Miller as his trusted partner. John’s area of concentration was banking law, estate planning, and corporate law. He was corporate counsel, director, and shareholder of Herget Financial Corp. and Herget National Bank from 1977 until its sale in 2015.
He was a member of the Illinois State Bar Association, Missouri Bar, and Tazewell County Bar Association, serving as its president in 1972-73. He was a member of Pekin Country Club and was a past member of its Board of Governors. He also was a member of Olde Florida Golf Club in Naples, Florida, where he spent the winter months. John served as uncompensated counsel for St. Paul United Church of Christ, Tazewell Animal Protective Society, Tazewell Youth Hockey, and the Pekin Day Care Center. John was community minded and fundraised for the Boy Scouts, TAPS, Heart Fund, Tazewell Youth Hockey, Christian Civic Outreach, and the Leadership Circle of the United Way of Pekin. He was a regular supporter of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and had made anonymous contributions for various community park projects in Pekin and Kirksville, MO. John’s hobbies were sports. His favorite was participating in snow skiing. He also enjoyed golfing with a low handicap of 4, water skiing, boating, sporting clay shooting, and keeping current of sports cars.
John was baptized a Christian as a small child and later confirmed in the First Presbyterian Church in Kirksville, MO. He was a member of St. Paul United Church of Christ in Pekin.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Tazewell Animal Protective Society, 100 Taps Lane, Pekin, IL 61554 or to the Pekin Park Foundation, 1701 Court Street, Pekin, IL 61554.