Omar Christ Wilhelms, age 87 of Shannon, IL passed away Friday, October 18, 2019 at Liberty Village in Freeport, IL. He was born on May 18, 1932 to the late Christ and Lillian (Woessner) Wilhelms. Omar married Janice Craddock on June 27, 1954 in Clinton, IA. He was a 1950 graduate of Shannon High School and a 1954 graduate of Cornell College in Mt. Vernon, IA.

Omar was a member of Bethel United Methodist Church of Shannon where he served as Sunday School Superintendent. He was a charter member of Shannon Lions Club where he served as President from 1979 to 1980. He served as Treasurer and President of Group IV of the Illinois Bankers Association, also he was President of Carroll County Bankers organization. He served as Treasurer of the Shannon School District and also served as Director. He served on the Highland Community College foundation from 1976 to 1994. He was a 50 year member of the Masonic Lodge and Tebala Shriners of Rockford.

Omar was President and Chairman of the Board for First State Bank of Shannon Polo and Lake Carroll. He started working for the Bank fulltime on July 19, 1954 and was elected to the Board of Directors in 1956. He facilitated the purchase of the Polo National Banks assets in 1993, and later directed the creation and building of the Lake Carroll Bank. Omar and his wife, Jan have been strong supporters of our local communities and are proud of the growth in those communities.

He is survived by his wife, Jan Wilhelms of Shannon; his two daughters, Robin (Jeffery) Saar of Lake Carroll and Candy (Dennis) Schubert of Shannon; his grandchildren, Cassie (Jason) Mlakar of Lake Carroll, Justin Schubert of Shannon and Nathan (Tina) Schubert of Polo; his great grandchildren, Caylie, Britney, Alysia, Emerson, Miles and Summer; his sister, De Lores Meiners of Dixon. He was preceded in death by his parents.

A Celebration of Life will be held on Sunday, October 20, 2019 at 3:00 p.m. at Bethel United Methodist Church in Shannon with a visitation beginning at 1:00 p.m. A memorial fund has been established.