Charles Iben

Former circuit judge also

was a patron of the arts

PEORIA - Charles W. Iben, 92, of Peoria passed away on Thursday, April 14, 2011, at Proctor Hospital in Peoria.

He was born July 1, 1918, in Peoria to Reinhard and Anna Iben. Charles married Shirley Fleming of Moberly, Mo., on Oct. 10, 1945. She preceded him in death on March 25, 2009.

Charles is survived by his son, Thomas of Peoria; his daughter, Leslie Iben Cassidy of Bethesda, Md.; three grandchildren, Charles Cassidy and Thomas Cassidy, both of Washington, D.C., and Leslie Anne Cassidy of Atlanta, Ga.; and several cousins.

Charles attended Peoria public schools and was graduated from Peoria Central High School. He went to Amherst College in Amherst, Mass., where he was awarded the school chemistry and creative writing prizes and was Phi Beta Kappa upon his graduation in 1939. Charles was a member of the Chi Psi fraternity at Amherst.

He served in the U.S. Merchant Marine and the U.S. Maritime Service during World War II.

Charles went to Yale Law School in New Haven, Conn., where he was accepted for the Yale Law Review and graduated in 1947.

After law school, Charles returned to Peoria and became a justice of the peace and then police magistrate. In 1960, he was elected Peoria County Circuit Judge, a post he held until 1978.

Judge Iben and his wife, Shirley, were supporters of the Peoria Symphony and Opera Illinois. He was a contributor to numerous charitable organizations and was a member of the William Booth Society of the Salvation Army.

He was a member of St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Peoria, where he served on the vestry.

Charles enjoyed writing novels and he built the house in which he and his wife lived until their passing.

Visitation will be at 10 a.m. Wednesday, April 20, at St. Paul's Episcopal Cathedral in Peoria. The funeral service will follow at 11 a.m.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Salvation Army or to Luthy Botanical Garden.

Online condolences may be sent to thomasribe@sbcglobal.net.