Family: Maywood man believed to be oldest in Illinois dies at 112

A west suburban man believed to be the oldest person in Illinois died last weekend after a short illness.

Wash Wesley of Maywood died Saturday at the age of 112, a statement from his family said. According to the Gerontology Research Group, he was the oldest man in Illinois.

He was born Jan. 21, 1903, in Ferriday, Louisiana, the youngest of six children. In 1950, he moved to Maywood, working at Elmwood Park Ford and International Harvester. He married twice, but had no children.

He was the oldest deacon at Second Baptist Church in Maywood.

Wesley was “very independent and did not use a walker, cane or hearing aid,” the family statement said.

He was known for having a “strong faith in God and praying for people. … When asked how he was doing, he would often say, ‘I’m doing fine, thanks to the good Lord’,” the statement said.

A funeral service will be conducted at Second Baptist Church at 436 S. 13th Ave. in Maywood from 4-8 p.m. Saturday. Burial will be 10 a.m. Monday at the Oakridge-Glen Oak Cemetary at 4301 W. Roosevelt Rd. in Hillside.