Gary Childs, a reporter at the Journal Star in Peoria, Ill., for more than 30 years, died Friday at his home. He was 58.
Childs started part time for the Journal Star while a student at Bradley University in the 1970s. He obtained his master's degree in journalism from the University of Illinois, then worked for the Chicago-area Suburban Tribune before returning to the Journal Star as a full-time sports reporter in 1982.
A graduate of Illinois Valley Central High School in Chillicothe, Lincoln Land Community College in Springfield and Bradley, Childs spent most of his career in the sports department. He handled the Journal Star's University of Illinois beat for nearly 20 years. He spearheaded the newspaper's coverage of the Steamboat Classic, which inducted him into its Hall of Fame in June this year. Childs also covered Major League Baseball and numerous high school sports for the JS.
Gary Childs, a reporter at the Journal Star in Peoria, Ill., for more than 30 years, died Friday at his home. He was 58.
Childs started part time for the Journal Star while a student at Bradley University in the 1970s. He obtained his master's degree in journalism from the University of Illinois, then worked for the Chicago-area Suburban Tribune before returning to the Journal Star as a full-time sports reporter in 1982.
A graduate of Illinois Valley Central High School in Chillicothe, Lincoln Land Community College in Springfield and Bradley, Childs spent most of his career in the sports department. He handled the Journal Star's University of Illinois beat for nearly 20 years. He spearheaded the newspaper's coverage of the Steamboat Classic, which inducted him into its Hall of Fame in June this year. Childs also covered Major League Baseball and numerous high school sports for the JS.
