Two long standing pillars in our community are Harry and Marian Crull. Harry was born in Hammond, Indiana. Shortly thereafter his family moved to Chillicothe where he went to school and graduated from Chillicothe High School in 1952.

Marian was born in rural Chillicothe in the Northampton area where she attended Senachwine Grade School and then grew up on a farm west of Sparland, and graduated from Sparland High School in 1953. The couple married in 1954 and had three children—Gary, Chris, and Danny. They have six grandchildren and 21 great grandchildren. The Crulls have been married for 68 years.

Harry began working for his father’s company, Spillman & Crull Excavating Company, right after high school as a heavy equipment operator taking over the business in 1972. He dug basements, laid underground plumbing lines, put in septic systems, and even poured concrete.

Marian had secured a job at Truitt Matthews 1st National Bank at that time, where she worked for 10 years. She then took on the duty as fulltime bookkeeper for the family business while raising her three children and her youngest sister.

In 1966, the Crulls helped organize a square dancing group called The Chilli Castoffs. The fun group had 30–40 people participating in dances at Shore Acres Clubhouse each week.

In 1976, Harry began being involved in community service to make his hometown a better place to live. He began by getting on the board of the Chillicothe Development Company, being President one of those years. It was then that he learned the city wanted to tear down the Pearce school. The Development Company decided to buy the property for $1 from the city and Barb Truitt made the commitment to put up the money to transform it into a Community Center, which ended up being over a $2,000,000 commitment! The Development Company oversaw the renovations then handed over the building to the newly formed Pearce Foundation Board that runs it to this day, where the Crulls are charter members.    

It was around this time that Harry and a few of the men in town saw some people struggling to get by, so they formed a Community Needs Agency. This began the start of our Christmas Basket program that still remains to be a valuable asset in this town. In addition to the basket program, he also recruited a group of men to insulate and winterize  homes in town.

In 1978,  Harry and Marion bought property on 4th street. They rented out the space for a while, then opened their own video store there. Their next venture was establishing Plaza Cleaners at that location which they sold upon retirement.

In 1985, Harry became interested in Optimist’s Clubs around the country and decided Chillicothe needed a club. This group’s focus is on helping kids in their communities. He talked 43 men into joining him, and with Harry as President, they started the Chillicothe Optimist’s Club.  In 1987, the Optimist’s International voted to allow women to join. So, Marian immediately joined the club, making her the first woman Optimist in Chillicothe and in the state of Illinois. In 37 years, Harry has been President three times and Marian once. Marian was the historian for the club since its inception in 1985 until 2021. To this date, they are both still involved with the local club.

During this time period, Harry also sat on the Chillicothe Park Board for 16 years, the Peoria County Board of Appeals for three years, and Marian on the Three Sister’s Advisory Board for six years.

The Crulls have lived in three different houses in Chillicothe, and also had a winter home in Mesa Arizona for 18 years, which they have since sold. In 2022 they made the decision to move into a lovely two bedroom apartment in Evergreen Senior Living Center to take a much deserved rest from all the chores that come with  homeowning.  

Harry and Marian saw a vision of what they wanted for their community and they went out and committed their lives to making it happen. When you look back on all their accomplishments, you see just how people like these two make an impact on communities. It doesn’t just happen…dedicated people make it happen.      

Harry and Marian, you have our thanks and our respect.