Rev. Gary D Bass

Rev. Gary D. Bass, 80, of Springfield, died Monday August 17th, 2020 at Concordia Village. He was born August 21, 1939 in Ramsey, IL. Gary was the son of James and Geraldine (Womack) Bass. He married Dianne (Daly) in 1960. Gary and Dianne were married for 42 years and had four children (Cindy, Tim, Amy, and Matt). Dianne died in 2003. Gary married Helen Carnduff in 2007

Rev. Bass was a retired United Methodist Minister. He graduated from Peoria High School, MacMurray College in Jacksonville, and Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston. Gary served many churches throughout his life. He began as a student pastor in Camden and Huntsville Churches. During his career, he served the following churches: Peoria First UMC, Laura UMC, Bowen UMC, Morton UMC, Rushville UMC, Grace UMC (Urbana), and Monticello UMC. Gary also served as a counselor on the Conference Counsel on Ministries for 6 years and served as district Superintendent of the Galesburg District from 1986 to 1992. Gary retired from the ministry after serving 42 years. After his retirement, he continued to serve at Sugar Creek UMC. Gary spent his retirement focusing on his hobby of working with pottery. He took classes at the University of Illinois, and also at the Springfield Art Association. What he loved most was being “Papa” to his grandchildren.

He is survived by his wife, Helen Bass; two sons, Tim (wife, Nancy) Bass of Dawson, and Matthew Bass of Phoenix; two daughters, Cindy (husband, Scott) Murphy of Rochester, and Amy (husband, Scott) Grant of Springfield; eight grandchildren, Nicholas (Laverne) Murphy, Emily Murphy, Audrey Murphy, Zachary Grant, Christopher Grant, Joshua Grant, Christa Bass, and Allison Bass; two great grandchildren, Kayden and Liam Murphy; three sisters, Gaye Nieukirk of Chillicothe, Connie Barton of Peoria, and Pat (husband, Dave) Finn of Peoria; and several nieces and nephews.

Visitation will be held from 5:00pm – 7:00pm on Friday August 21 at Laurel United Methodist Church 631 S Grand Ave W, Springfield, IL 62704. A private funeral for family will be on Saturday, August 22 at Laurel United Methodist Church followed by a graveside service at 3:00pm at the Rushville City Cemetery.

Memorial donations may be made to the Preachers Aid Society and Benefit Fund (www.pabf.com) and the Concordia Village Benevolent Care Fund. 

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