Larry Werries, a Morgan County farmer who went on to serve as Illinois Director of Agriculture under Gov. James R. Thompson, died Friday.
He was 83.
Werries farmed with his father, Leland, and his brother, John, in the Chapin and Concord area. The Werries operation was among the pioneers in Morgan County for confinement production of swine.
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Werries was appointed to the state’s top ag post by Thompson in 1981, replacing John R. Block, who resigned to become U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary under President Ronald Reagan.
Werries served as director for nine years, a state record.
On Oct. 20, 1982, the family farm hosted a visit by Reagan, who drove a John Deere tractor. Then-U.S. House Republican leader Robert Michel of Peoria, Thompson, Block and Werries shared the platform with Reagan.
The president presented the state ag department an award for excellence in promoting exports.
Werries led a number of trade promotion exchanges to the Soviet Union, China, Europe, Canada and Mexico.
During his time as state ag director, Werries served as Chairman of the Midwest Directors followed by two terms as President of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA).
After leaving the Thompson administration, Werries served as Director of Intergovernmental Affairs for the USDA in Washington, D.C., under President George H.W. Bush. Werries was the liaison between the USDA and units of state and local government.
Werries moved to suburban Chicago but returned to the Jacksonville area as an agent for RE/MAX specializing in commercial and farm sales.
A graduate of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Werries also served in the U.S. Army Reserves.
He is survived by his wife, Becky, a son and a daughter and his wife’s daughter.
A funeral service will be held at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church near Chapin at 10 a.m. on Friday. Airsman-Hires Funeral Home in Jacksonville is in charge of services.
Contact Steven Spearie: 217-622-1788, sspearie@sj-r.com, twitter.com/@StevenSpearie.
