If you saw one of three giant flags draped across Illinois 157 or Illinois 15 Saturday, it was for Mearl J. Justus.

If you heard bagpipes playing during the morning in Cahokia, it was in honor of the former sheriff.

And if you saw people standing along the roadway, waving small American flags, it was for Justus.

A funeral Mass was celebrated at 10 a.m. at Holy Family Catholic Church in Cahokia. Mourners cried and laughed, shook hands and embraced, in remembrance of the man who led law enforcement in St. Clair County for three decades.

When the Rev. Mark Reyling first met Justus, he thought it was providential that someone with such a name worked in law enforcement.

"Not only was it providential, it was fitting," he said during the homily of the 81-year-old Justus who died on Tuesday, one week after resigning as sheriff. "A man named Justus."

The funeral was in Cahokia, the town where Justus first entered law enforcement. He joined the Cahokia Police Department as a 22-year-old recruit before working his way up to chief. He then served 30 years as the sheriff of St. Clair County.

"A lifetime of work for a man named Justus," Reyling said.

Justus performed several acts of charity during his nearly 60 years in law enforcement, including encouraging Christmas party guests to bring donations for the needy; assisting a robbery victim get cataract surgery after her life savings had been stolen; and establishing a nutrition program at churches in Cahokia.

Dozens of law enforcement officials attended funeral, including officers from East St. Louis, Belleville, Metro Security and the St. Clair County Sheriff's Department.

They came together to celebrate "a life's work of a man who stood for justice," Reyling said.

Justus was a devout Catholic and not shy about his faith, Reyling said. "Mearl dedicated his life to serving and protecting God's holy people. He did that with great faith."

Reyling said that he occasionally brought Communion to Justus and his wife, Audrey, to their apartment upstairs from the St. Clair County Jail.

"Sometimes it took an act of God to get upstairs," he said, as the mourners momentarily traded their tears for laughter. "That place was safer than the jail."

St. Clair County Master Sgt. Thomas Trice gave a eulogy for Justus. Trice entered law enforcement when he was 23 and without a father. But he said Justus grew to be a mentor and father figure. "He was much more than a boss, he was a father surrogate."

In 2001, Trice's son died. He recalled Justus leaning back in his chair and telling him, "There is nothing more important than family. Take all the time you need."

Trice mentioned programs for the elderly and children that Justus had started. "If there was a Ph.D. for life lessons, we would call him Dr. Justus."

The walls of the church were decorated with greenery and wreaths with white candles and red holiday ribbons. Below those decorations sat dozens of floral arrangements from friends, family, politicians and law enforcement offices from the metro-east and across the state.

When guests walked into the church, they were handed a sheet of paper adorned with holly and berries around the edges. Across the top, it said, "Season's Greetings." They were copies of a letter from Justus dated "Christmas, 1980," when he served as the police chief of Cahokia.

The letter mentioned American hostages in Iran and unrest in the Middle East, but it also showed his religious side and passion for his profession.

"Our country in this generation are by destiny, rather than by choice, the watchmen of the walls of the world of freedom," Justus wrote in the letter. "I believe that it is appropriate that we ask for prayerful guidance for those entrusted with such enormous responsibility to exercise their strength with wisdom and restraint, that we may achieve in our time and for all times the ancient vision of PEACE ON EARTH, GOOD WILL TOWARD MEN."

The funeral also was simulcast to the Knights of Columbus Hall at 100 E. Fifth St. in Cahokia. Following the funeral, there was a funeral procession to Valhalla Cemetery at 3412 Frank Scott Parkway West in Belleville.

Memorials may be made to the Programs and Services for Older Persons and Mearl J. Justus Scholarship Fund at Southwestern Illinois College in Belleville.

Contributions may be made online at swic.edu/foundation or may be mailed to the Southwestern Illinois College Foundation at 2500 Carlyle Ave., Belleville, IL 62221.

Contact reporter Maria Hasenstab at mhasenstab@bnd.com or 618-239-2460.

Contact reporter Maria Hasenstab at mhasenstab@bnd.com or 618-239-2460.