Roy Coleman Hulse

Roy Coleman Hulse, age 97, of Godfrey, Illinois, passed away at 10:50 pm on December 29, 2024, at Asbury Village in Godfrey.

Funeral services will be held at 11:00am on Saturday, January 11, 2025, at the Green Trails United Methodist Church in Chesterfield, Missouri. Reverend Dr. Linda Settles will officiate.

Visitation will be held from 10:00 am to 11:00 am preceding the funeral service.

Burial will be at the Mount Olivet Cemetery in Hannibal, Missouri on Monday, January 13, 2025. A graveside service will be held at 1:00pm.  Reverend Nathan Markley will officiate.

The family is being served by the Smith Funeral Home & Chapel of Hannibal.

Roy was born June 26, 1927, at home in rural Rensselaer, MO, the son of Festus Ward Hulse and Martha Ellen (Mattie Ella) Tompkins Hulse. He loved to reminisce about his days growing up on the farm, recalling happy times, hard times, and hard work. He talked often about threshing time, shocking wheat/oats, milking cows, and numerous other memories of farm life. Roy attended grade school and high school in Rensselaer, graduating from Rensselaer High School in 1945. He served in the United States Navy from 1945-46, stationed in California after completing training at Great Lakes Naval Base in Chicago, where he sang with the Great Lakes Naval Choir. Following his honorable discharge from the Navy, he attended Hannibal LaGrange College in Hannibal, MO from 1946-48, where he was President of his sophomore class and sang with the “The Trojan Eight”, a men’s choral performance group. He attended the University of Missouri in Columbia from 1948-50, graduating with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration, with a major in marketing and minor in accounting.

Roy met his beloved wife, Jane Ann (Wassell) Hulse, from Hannibal MO, while attending the University of Missouri, and they were married on August 21, 1949, at the First Christian Church in Hannibal. Jane Ann and Roy pursued life’s goals and dreams in multiple locations, residing in Columbia, Canton, and St. Charles, MO; Granite City, IL; Augusta, GA; Mount Vernon, IL; and Chesterfield, MO. After Jane Ann’s death in 2016, Roy moved to Godfrey, IL in 2019, spending the remaining years of his life at Asbury Village.

Roy’s professional career began at the Missouri Farmers Association in Canton, MO from 1950-55. He then worked at Union Starch and Refining Co. and Miles Laboratories in Granite City, IL from 1955-1971, holding positions of cost accounting supervisor, budget and insurance analyst, and corn buyer/analyst. He subsequently worked as a grain merchandiser for The Pillsbury Company in Mt. Vernon, IL and St. Louis, MO, retiring in 1992 after a fulfilling career in the grain industry.

Roy led a full and faithful life as a Christian and was an active member of Evangelical United Church of Christ in Godfrey, IL at the time of his death. His previous church homes were First Christian Church, Hannibal, MO; Central Christian Church, Granite City, IL; First Baptist Church, Mount Vernon, IL; and he was a 40-year member of the United Methodist Church of Green Trails, Chesterfield, MO. Roy was highly involved in church activities, and over the years attended Sunday school classes, sang in the choir with his rich bass voice, and volunteered his time and talents in various church groups and charity projects.

Roy and Jane Ann loved traveling and enjoyed many trips together, including a special trip to Europe in 1984. They enjoyed family camping trips, ballroom and square dancing, attending concerts, playing cards, and socializing with a wide circle of friends. Above all, they loved spending time with their family, grandchildren and great grandchildren.

Roy enjoyed many hobbies, including golf, bridge, listening to music, watching movies and sports on TV (Kansas City Chiefs!), restoring and refinishing antique furniture, and woodworking. He was a highly skilled craftsman and a perfectionist, creating many pieces of beautiful furniture, including a queen size, Mission style walnut bed, bedside tables, coffee tables, an armoire, floor lamps, and jewelry boxes. Roy and Jane Ann loved antique furniture, collected over the years and painstakingly restored by Roy. In 1967, he purchased an antique player piano, manufactured in 1913, and restored it to its full functionality and beauty. He and Jane Ann accumulated over 135 piano rolls and had great fun entertaining family and friends for over 50 years. The piano was donated to Asbury Village in Godfrey in 2021, providing continued enjoyment to the residents there.

Roy was preceded in death by his wife, Jane Ann Hulse, his parents, F. Ward and Martha Ellen Hulse, and his siblings, Mary Ellen (Richard) Trower, Edward Hulse, Francis (Virginia) Hulse, and Laura Ruth Hulse.

Roy is survived by a daughter, Terry (Eric) Thurston of Godfrey, IL, a son, Kirk (Diane) Hulse of Collinsville, IL, two granddaughters, Erica (Brian) McDermott of Columbia, IL and Carley (Josh) Arnsman of Fowler, IL, a grandson, Drew (Tori) Hulse of Reno, NV, and great grandchildren Riley, Janie and Wyatt McDermott; Deacon, Brinley and Maverick Arnsman; Gavin and Camryn Hulse; and many nieces and nephews.

Memorial contributions may be made to Hannibal LaGrange University General Scholarship Fund; Green Trails United Methodist Church; or to the church or charity of one’s choosing, in care of Smith Funeral Home & Chapel.

Online condolences can be offered to the family and video tribute viewed on Roy's memorial page at www.smithfuneralhomeandchapel.com.