Obituary for Alan Wienman
Alan Wienman, 88, of Morton, died Sunday December 25, 2011 at his residence of pancreatic cancer. Alan was an accomplished attorney and judge, a nationally ranked bridge player, and devoted husband. He was born September 27, 1923, in Dixon, IL, to Barnett and Gussie Manfield Wienman. He entered Harvard University at age 16. His much anticipated Ivy League education was cut short when he was called home to Dixon to attend to his ailing mother. Following her death, he completed his sophomore year at University of Chicago. Alan enlisted in the Army in 1941, serving in the Japanese occupation forces. After nearly four years of service, he returned to Illinois to begin a writing career as a reporter at the Pantagraph in Bloomington. He completed his undergraduate degree at Illinois Wesleyan University and then worked at daily newspapers in Arkansas and Michigan before entering University of Illinois Law School in 1949. Following graduation, Alan practiced law at Lewis and Wienman in Bloomington for 13 years. He then joined the federal government as a hearing examiner and Administrative Law Judge for the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission and later the Social Security Administration. He held positions at federal offices in St. Louis, Minneapolis, and Peoria, from where he retired as a judge. He married Elizabeth Anne Lewis (“Ann”) in Bloomington on November 18, 1948. Ann died in April, 2005. Alan started playing bridge in law school and played competitively with Ann in local and regional tournaments. He became the first Life Master in McLean County. After Ann’s death, he contracted with professional partners and played in duplicate bridge tournaments across North America. The highlight of his bridge career was a defeat of the top ranked national pair at that time. Alan felt that the discipline of bridge helped ward off dementia and fervently hoped that young people would spark a new generation of interest in contract bridge. Alan was preceded in death by four siblings: George Wyman of Peoria, Harry Wienman of Dixon, Ruth Slater of Milwaukee, and Frieda Smuckler of Aurora. He is survived by six nieces and nephews: Thomas Wyman of Peoria, Jean F. Wyman of Shorewood, MN, James Wyman of Godfrey, Richard Wienman of Dixon, Judy Wienman of Albany, NY, and Gwen Yaple of Tucson, AZ. One nephew, Grant “Rick” Wyman, preceded him in death. Other family members included his beloved birds and dogs, including Lovey, the Jack Russell, who is well remembered as Alan’s road cohort during bridge tours. Important to Alan in most recent years were the helpfulness and companionship of Micaela Maxwell , the caring staff of Circle of Life, his attentive Morton neighbors, and the Peoria and Bloomington area duplicate bridge communities, with whom he spent many enjoyable hours. Donations may be made to a charity of the donor’s choice. Cremation rites have been accorded and a celebration of his life with acquaintances and relatives will be held at a later date.
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