James A. Bock

James A. Bock James (Jim) Austin Bock, age 93, passed away in his home in Hinsdale, IL, on Tuesday, February 4th, 2014. Son of the late Harvey and Pauline Bock, Jim was born and raised in Mishawaka, Indiana, a distinguished graduate of Mishawaka High School, Purdue University (Bachelor 's in Chemical Engineering), MIT (Master 's in Chemical Engineering) and the MIT PhD program where the war derailed his path to a professorship. He spent his 40-year professional career with Standard Oil Company of Indiana, later known as Amoco, engineering our modern energy infrastructure. From Whiting, IN to New York and back to his mid-western roots in Chicago, from flamethrower development during WWII, to refinery development worldwide, to economic forecasting on a global scale, work assignments and a post-retirement passion for exploration and intellectual enrichment took Jim to over 50 nations on 7 continents. A lifelong musician, Jim 's early classical piano training blossomed into high school band trombone and ultimately featured both in his high-school and college jazz bands. In 1944 Jim met and married classical pianist and elementary school music teacher, Irene Risley of Oaktown, IN, graduate of Indiana University. In his 55 year marriage to Irene, they shared a friendly IU/PU rivalry, a decades-running game of Gin Rummy, and a passion for finding the farm stand with the freshest-picked corn-on-the-cob. They also shared their love and devotion for each other, as well as for music, travel, church, family and community. Over the years, Jim dedicated countless hours to Kiwanis, PTA, Citizens Advisory Committees, Boy Scouts, Little League, Community Concerts, Adams Street Investors, and Union Church Choir, Parish Life and Board of Trustees. After the loss of his beloved Irene, Jim found on his travels, another love in Phyllis Bennett of St. Louis, MO. Married for 11 years, Phyllis survives Jim along with his children, Jerry (Lainey Pleet) Bock, Jenny (Neil) Moehring, Jonathan (Mia Kelley) Bock, Joel (Mary) Bock, and Judy Bock; his brother, Roger (Waneta Taylor) Bock; and grandchildren, Christopher Bock, James Moehring, Jonathon Bock, Alison Bock and Ian Kelley. Phyllis restored to Jim many of the same enjoyments he 'd known before, and cared for him lovingly through his final journey, for which he was blessed and his family is grateful. Please join his family in remembering his life with joy, as it was long and well-lived. A visitation will be held on Friday, February 7, 2014 from 3:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at Gibbons Elliston Funeral Home, 60 S. Grant St, Hinsdale, Illinois. Memorial Service at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, February 8, 2014 at The Union Church of Hinsdale, 137 S. Garfield Ave, Hinsdale, Illinois. Private interment at Bronswood Cemetery, Oakbrook, IL. Memorial giving selection - The Union Church of Hinsdale or Purdue University College of Engineering.