Dolores A. Shilling

Dolores Shilling passed away on December 10, 2023 at the age of 87. She will be remembered for her roles as mother, grandmother, and teacher, not just to her own family, but the hundreds of other children she positively impacted throughout her life.

Growing up in De Land, Illinois, Dolores overcame the odds of growing up with very little in a small rural town to earn an opportunity to attend college at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She credits her high school history teacher, who helped her write her college application and even provided the envelope and stamp to submit it. Without her guidance, Dolores may have never been able to take the first steps toward a lifelong pursuit of teaching.

Dolores earned her B.A in Elementary Education, focusing on special education. She earned this degree at a time when schools were beginning to build special education programs. Receiving offers from across Illinois, she accepted her first job from the Moline School District and helped pioneer their special education program. There she moved to her new home in East Moline with her soon-to-be husband, Gerald Shilling. After a few years she would move on to teaching first and second grade for the East Moline School District, first at Wells and later at Hillcrest.

Dolores and Gerald had two daughters, Emily and Emilia. Unfortunately, tragedy would strike the family when her husband would pass away due to a heart attack in 1981. She would take on the role of a single parent, raising both of her daughters while working full-time as a teacher.

Aside from her life’s calling as a teacher, she dedicated much of her life to the support and raising of her three grandchildren: Andrew, Eric, and Tricia. Whether she was watching them for her daughter Emilia or taking on the role of full-time caretaker, she would forego anything else to make sure that her grandchildren were well provided for.

Outside the classroom and her home, Dolores was politically driven and supported a number of local campaigns. She was most proud of the work she and her friends and family provided for former Congressman Lane Evans. You could find a photo of Lane prominently displayed in her dining room.

Dolores was an avid reader. You would always find her reading the latest mystery book from the East Moline Public Library. Later in life she drifted more toward romance novels and devoured the entire catalog of J.D. Robb books more than once.

After leaving behind her lifelong home, she moved in with her grandson Eric and settled into quieter years dedicated to reading, watching her favorite television programs (her favorite being The Big Bang Theory), and getting to be a grandmother all over again for her granddaughter’s three children, Baylee, Brayden, and Brantley.

Dolores passed away peacefully at UnityPoint Rock Island surrounded by her immediate family. She is survived by her siblings Gary, Judy, and William; daughters Emily and Emilia; son-in-law Ronnie; grandchildren Andrew, Eric, and Tricia; and great-grandchildren Baylee, Brayden, and Brantley.

A graveside ceremony will be held for the immediate family.

Family and friends are invited to share memories and express online condolences on her Memory Page at wendtfuneralhome.com