Duane Eugene Collins, 65 of Avon, passed away peacefully at 5:05 p.m. Thursday, May 13, 2021, in Hinsdale, Illinois, with his family at his side.
Duane was born November 27, 1955 in Avon, the son of Donald E. and Valeria Ann (Peel) Collins, Sr. He married Janet E. Reffett on March 28, 1981 at the First Baptist Church in Avon.
Duane is survived by his loving wife of 40 years, Janet; his mother, Valeria Johnson of Macomb; his children, Michael (Jenny Glaub) Reffett of Avon, Melanie (Tim Smith) Collins of Brimfield, Justin Collins of Avon, Albert (Tonya) Collins of Avon, Crystal (Corey) Mowen of Avon and his adopted son, Landon Collins at home; 20 grandchildren; two brothers, Ronald E. Collins of Elkton, Kentucky and Donald E. Collins, Jr. of Sciota; two sisters, Patricia (Jesse) Harper of Memphis, Tennessee and Kay Collins of Sarasota, Florida; his stepmother, Maxine Collins of Abingdon; one stepbrother, Dan Johnson of Aledo; two stepsisters, Nancy Pieper of Bushnell and Kristy (Andy) Austin of Abingdon; and several nieces, nephews and their families.
He was preceded in death by his father, his grandmother, Velma Jones, his stepfather, Donald Johnson, his in-laws, Claude and Marian Reffett, one sister-in-law, Linda Collins, one niece, Kimberly Felgar, one nephew, Eric Mitchell and one stepbrother-in-law, Walter Pieper.
Duane lived in the Bushnell and Avon areas most of his life. He graduated from Bushnell-Prairie City High School in 1973. He studied small engine repair and worked on lawnmowers at his home. He worked as a welder at Butler Manufacturing in Galesburg for 31 years until it closed in 2005. He later worked in maintenance at the Avon Nursing Home and then operated DC Sales, Inc. from his home, retiring in 2019. He was a member of New Harvest Church in Abingdon.
Duane never knew a stranger and enjoyed visiting with everyone. He was an avid outdoorsman and enjoyed deer hunting, fishing and gardening. Duane loved spending time with his sons and grandsons building cars for Figure-8 racing and racing together as a family. They also enjoyed participating in the area Demolition Derbies. He loved the red-white & blue paint theme for his cars. He enjoyed the quietness of putting jigsaw puzzles together. He left lasting memories for his family by making them all DVDs of family gatherings. He was a true family man and encouraged family gatherings.
Duane was a stem cell recipient through Be the Match. Please consider joining the registry to be a donor. For more information visit BeTheMatch.org.
Funeral service will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday, May 19, 2021 at New Harvest Church, 835 W. Martin St. in Abingdon. Rev. Russ Witkowski will officiate. Burial will be in the Abingdon Cemetery. Visitation will be from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Hinchliff-Pearson-West Funeral Directors and Cremation Services Abingdon Chapel.
