- Date Of Birth: November 12, 1919
- Date Of Death: September 8, 2015
- State: Illinois
Lester Stanley Pitchford, age 95 of Richview died Tuesday, September 8, 2015, at Good Samaritan Hospital in Mt. Vernon. He was born on November 12, 1919, in Washington County at the home of his parents Raymond A. and Margaret M., nee Zapp Pitchford.
After graduating grade school from Whittenburg School, he took over the responsibility for the family farm in rural Richview. He expanded the farm to include livestock and grain as well as maintaining orchards and marketing the fruit and strawberries to the local area. At one point in the 1960s, he had over 100 acres of strawberries as well as 100 acres of orchards. Annually, he would also purchase and transport pecans from the south to be sold at his market. As the farm operations expanded throughout the years he saw the need for grain storage and crop inputs to be made available to the small farmers and began Pitchford Elevator in 1965. Mr. Pitchford was involved in many business endeavors throughout the years but was especially interested in the banking industry as his grandfather, Alfred Pitchford was one of the founding directors of the Richview State Bank. Upon his grandfather’s death, he was appointed to the board of directors and served in this capacity for well over 60 years. In this role, he oversaw the bank’s growth from one location as Richview State Bank to three locations now known as Community Trust Bank with expansion into the Centralia and Nashville market. He placed great importance on the value of an independent family-owned business as an integral part of a small community and was proud that six generations have been involved in the bank as well as the farm and elevator which he ensured would continue well into the future. It was important to him to invest and reinvest in his surrounding community providing employment and economic development for the area he loved. Lester married M. Lorraine Russell on December 28, 1940, in Robinson, Illinois and she survives.
Also surviving are two daughters, Nancy Roethemeyer and husband Don of Richview and Sharon Creed and husband Gary of Waterloo, Illinois. Six grandchildren Brian Grathwohl and wife Michele of Richview; Sheila Burcham and husband Matt of Nashville; Amy Stevens and husband Josh of Nashville; Angela Creed and husband Ed Hengel of Columbia, Scott Creed of Waterloo; and Nicole Creed and husband Jeff Fleece of Prospect, Kentucky. Thirteen great-grandchildren, Stephanie Grathwohl, Curtis Grathwohl, Justin Grathwohl, Emma Grathwohl, Brittany Burcham, Danielle Stambaugh, and husband Jonathon, Brooke Burcham, Lucas Knepp, Abby Knepp, August Hengel, Macie Hengel, Nicholas and John Fleece. One great-grandson, Leland Stambaugh. Surviving siblings include Marie Finke of Missouri and Marjorie Murphy of Ohio.
Preceding him in death are his parents, a brother Wesley Pitchford, sister Viola Reed, and son-in-law Curtis Grathwohl.
