Roberta L. Egan, 81, of Peoria, Illinois, died Monday, January 17, 2022, at OSF Saint Francis Medical Center, Peoria.
She was born December 7, 1940, in Galesburg, Illinois, to Robert M. and Eva (Fullerton) Egan.
After graduating Galesburg High School, Roberta attended the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University and was a member of Delta Zeta sorority. She later graduated from Monmouth College.
A devoted Republican, she assisted several campaigns during her lifetime. At 19, Roberta served as a page at the 1960 Republican National Convention. She was appointed Midwest Regional Chairman of the College Young Republicans and worked as an advance team member for Richard Nixon’s 1960 presidential campaign.
Roberta served Illinois Governor Richard B. Ogilvie as administrative assistant to John F. Briggs, director of the Illinois Department of Mental Health. She returned to Galesburg to help her father in his legal practice. Roberta then moved to Peoria where she was assistant to Hotel Pѐre Marquette general manager Ferdinand Sperl. Later, she was secretary at the University of Illinois College of Medicine Peoria, assisting both the pathology and graduate medical education programs during her 33-year tenure.
With an enduring commitment to learning, Roberta was a voracious reader of history and politics and had a love for fashion and gourmet food.
Roberta is survived by her brother, Gary Egan, of Galesburg; sister, Nancy (and Dennis) Powell of Olathe, Kansas; nephew, Matthew (and Laurie) and Turner Powell of Lawrence, Kansas; and, niece, Susan (and Joseph), Bishop, and Loxley Mipanyarack of Boulder, Colorado. Her parents, Robert M. and Eva Fullerton Egan, precede her in death.
Graveside services will be held at Oak Lawn Memorial Gardens, Galesburg, Illinois, on Monday, January 24, 2022, at 11 a.m. Hinchliff-Pearson-West Funeral Directors and Cremation Services Galesburg Chapel is assisting the family with arrangements. Online condolences may be made at www.h-p-w.com.
In remembrance of Roberta’s life, the family asks that any charitable donations be made to the KCCDD Mary F. Egan Scholarship Fund through the Galesburg Community Foundation online at www.yourgcf.org or by calling 309-344-8898.
