John G. "Buster" Westbrook

MORTON– John G. “Buster” Westbrook, Sr., 87, of Morton, passed away Saturday, October 24, 2020, at OSF St. Francis Medical Center in Peoria.

He was born January 22, 1933, in Pekin, Ill., to George and Pauline (Green) Westbrook. He married Patricia Morrow in 1956. He later married Norma Pike on November 2, 1984, in Morton, Ill.

He is survived by his wife, Norma Westbrook of Morton; two sons, John (Michelle) Westbrook, Jr. of Pittsfield, Ill. and Jeff (Kristin) Westbrook of East Peoria; two daughters, Cheri (Ross) Springer of Tremont and Joye (Jim) Rinkenberger of Pekin; two stepsons, Gary Pike of Sarasota, Fla. and Gregory Pike (Deneil Thompson) of Decatur, Ill.; 10 grandchildren; four great grandchildren and three step grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by one sister.

John was a veteran of the U.S. Navy having served in Korea from 1951 to 1953.

He retired from Caterpillar in April of 1996 after working for 20 years as a boilermaker. Prior to working at Caterpillar, John was a boilermaker with Local 60 in Morton for 10 years. After retirement, John was a greeter at Lighthouse Automotive in Morton for several years. He attended Morton United Methodist Church, but was a member at First Baptist Church in Pekin. John was a member of Boilermakers Local 60 in Morton and United Auto Workers Local 974 in East Peoria. He enjoyed watching college football.

A funeral service will be held at 10 a.m. on Thursday, October 29, 2020, at Knapp-Johnson Funeral Home and Cremation Center in Morton, with Pastor Gabe Wanck officiating. Visitation will be from 5 to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, October 28, 2020, and from 9 to 10 a.m. Thursday prior to the service, both at the funeral home. Social distancing guidelines will be observed during the visitation and funeral service and masks are required. Burial will be at Hirstein Cemetery in Morton, where full military rites will be conducted.

Memorials may be made to Morton United Methodist Church building fund.

To view John’s video tribute or to leave an online condolence for the family, visit www.knappjohnson.com.