Garey James Ahler, age 78, of Greenville, IL passed away Wednesday, June 20, 2018 at Greenville Nursing and Rehab Center. Funeral services will be conducted Sunday. June 24, 2018 at 2 PM at Young Funeral Home. Burial will be in Mt. Auburn Cemetery. Friends may call Sunday after 1 PM at the funeral home. Memorial contributions are suggested to The First Presbyterian Church or St. Judes Children’s Research Hospital.
Garey was born June 22, 1939 in Brownstown, IL to Herman James and Dorothy Alice (Munter) Ahler. He married Nina Lee Sathoff in August of 1963 and they later divorced. He is survived by his sisters Sharon Schoen of Greenville, IL and Karen (Paul) Suess of Maryville, IL. He is also survived by four nieces and two nephews.
He attended Greenville public schools and graduated from Greenville High School in 1957 where he was voted “Best Citizen”. He earned three college degrees, a BA in English from Greenville College in 1961, a MS in Education from SIU-Carbondale, and a MA in Public Relations from Syracuse University. He taught English at Carlyle, IL and Peoria, IL for a time before moving to Syracuse, NY from 1963. After five years as an advertising agency account executive in Syracuse he returned to Greenville in 1972. He engaged in marketing, sales, and office management positions in Central Illinois for another 12 years. From April 1985 to January 1, 2003 he served as Law Librarian at The Vandalia Illinois Correctional Center before retiring. He was a member of The First Presbyterian Church in Greenville, IL, Syracuse NY, and Vandalia, IL
