Imogene Catherine Beckemeyer

Imogene Catherine Beckemeyer, 95, passed away March 26, 2025, at Manor Court, Carbondale, Illinois. Imogene was born June 21, 1929, in Bartelso, Illinois, to the late Barbara Schlott and Leo Beckemeyer. She grew up in Carlyle, Illinois, and graduated from Carlyle High School in 1947. She had planned to get a job, but an influential H.S. math teacher, Coach Harris, encouraged her to go to college. She pursued her education at Southern Illinois University (SIU) in Carbondale, graduating with a B.S. and M.S. in Mathematics. Her master’s thesis was Methods of Calculating the Inverse of a Matrix.

While working on her bachelor’s degree, math professor McDaniels helped her secure a Teaching Assistant position to pay tuition and complete her education. She realized that “someone was always there to help” when she most needed it, which greatly influenced her life and acts of charitable giving. She was a member of Delta Zeta sorority at SIU (and later served as the chapter advisor, earning a national award for her volunteerism.)

Imogene stayed in Carbondale after graduation working as an Instructor and Assistant Professor in Mathematics at SIU-C. Her favorite subjects to teach were analytic geometry, calculus, algebra and elementary statistics. One of her students (who later became an SIU Administrator) said of her statistics course: “I used those skills all of my career!” He called out “Hey Teach” whenever he saw her on campus, which she really enjoyed. For ten years Imogene lived on campus at Bowyer Hall, serving as a Resident Counselor. She always laughed about being awakened at 3 a.m. by girls who needed help catching a mouse in their room. She retired in 1985.

Imogene was very active in First Presbyterian Church, serving as deacon, elder, chair of the trustees, and was involved in Presbyterian Women, Church Women United, University Women’s Club and the American Association of University Women, also serving as President for many years. She served as Treasurer for the Hunger Sale and enjoyed volunteering as the “Spice Lady” for Vacation Bible School each summer. She was a lifelong reader and appreciated her book club friends.

A favorite experience was a summer during college working in Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado. She loved hiking and seeing nature’s beauty. Another incredible memory was a five-week tour in Europe with Carlyle girlfriends, exploring Germany, England, France and the Netherlands. She spoke about those experiences all her life.

Noting how she had been helped to achieve her educational goals, Imogene was committed to giving back. Over the years, she established five scholarships to aid students pursing higher education, including The Imogene Beckemeyer Scholarship for math majors who would teach; the Robert Dudenbostel Scholarship to honor a friend and aid a dental program student; the Schlott-Beckemeyer Scholarship to help hometown high school graduates attending SIU; the McDaniel Scholarship for math majors at SIU; and the Calvin and Nancy Gillespie Memorial Endowment for SIU music majors. Her generosity continued to the end, as Imogene donated her home to Habitat for Humanity so that it could be updated, then offered to a family in need.

Imogene was preceded in death by her parents, Leo and Barb Beckemeyer and many close friends who were also family, including David and Verna Meyer, Jeanette Schaeffer, Mim Huelsman, Ruth Sohn, Marjorie Sohn, Farouk and Dee Umar, and cousins Benny Schlott and Dawn Buck. She is survived by many close friends including Eileen and Keith Meyer, Mark Meyer and Nicole Sheridan, Brenda Myers and the local First Presbyterian Church family, Leila Bacon, Mae Alexander, her Schlott cousins – Kenneth, Penny, Sandra, and Dennis and Beckemeyer & Hustedde cousins.

A celebration of Imogene’s life will be held later this spring. Memorials may be made to SIU Foundation – Imogene C. Beckemeyer Scholarship Fund or First Presbyterian Church, Carbondale.

Meredith Funeral Home in Carbondale assisted the family with arrangements. To leave a story or memory of Imogene, visit www.meredithfh.com