Devillez, Randy

Randy DeVillez, age 64, died unexpectedly on Tuesday, February 19, 2013 at his home.

He is survived by the love of his life and soul mate, Billinda; daughter, Valerie (Richard) Henning; stepdaughter, Channing Fullaway; a son, Eric (Beth) DeVillez; and stepsons, Mike and Brian Schreiber. He was the beloved Papa to seven grandchildren.

Randy was born August 6, 1948 in Evansville, Indiana. He graduated from Tell City (Indiana) High School in 1966, University of Evansville in 1970 (BA), and Miami University Ohio (MA) in 1972. Then he joined the staff at Moraine Valley Community College in Palos Hills, Illinois.

He was a tenured college professor of writing and literature, often nominated for regional and national Master Teacher and/or Professor of the Year awards. Randy was a poet who was published in several regional and national publications. He earned two certificates/awards from The Atlantic decades ago. Randy was a writer of nonfiction articles, poems, and essays on various topics. He was recently published in Art Times, The Writer , and Fine Lines .

Randy was the author of Writing: Step by Step which is currently in the tenth edition with over 108,000 copies sold for college and high school college-prep courses. He co-authored and or contributed to several textbooks, study guides, histories, and annual reports. Randy edited, wrote, and/or broadcasted 136 scripts for college credit courses broadcast over commercial radio in metro Chicago, and he was a frequent speaker, presenter, and panelist across the country.

A Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, March 9, 2013 beginning at 1:00 p.m. at The Alamo (115 North 5th Street) in Springfield, Illinois. Please join Randy’s family and friends for a time of story-telling and sharing, topped off by a live Blues jam session guaranteed to thrill Randy’s soul in the after-life!

In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to “Blues in the Schools”, FineLines.org, or The Blues Kids Foundation.