When he performed gospel music, S. Wayne Easley’s fingers seemed to dance along the piano keys and his baritone voice boomed. “We’d be up singing and playing until all hours of the night, often with friends,” said his close friend and fellow teacher Barbara Wardwell. Mr. Easley, 53, who taught for 30 years in Crystal Lake Elementary School District 47, died of colon cancer Monday, Feb. 7, in Provena St. Joseph Hospital, Elgin. Born in Urbana, he graduated from Urbana High School and then received a bachelor’s degree in music education from the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. He taught for a short time in Urbana and in 1975 moved to Crystal Lake to become an instructional music teacher. He taught at various schools in the district, most recently at Hannah Beardsley Middle School, before he went on medical disability three years ago. He was a member of the Crystal Lake Elementary Teachers Association, became regional chairman of the Illinois Education Association, and later was appointed to its state board of directors. He served on a race relations board at United Methodist Church and was a former board member of the Crystal Lake YMCA. He is survived by his parents, Syral and Tressa, and two sisters, Sheila Seward and Emily Kathryne Lockett. Visitation will be from 9 to 11 a.m. Saturday in St. Luke CME Church, 809 N. 5th St., Champaign, followed by services. A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Feb. 20 in First United Methodist Church, 236 W. Crystal Lake Ave., Crystal Lake.
