Services set for Belleville City Council candidate who died
A private funeral service is set for Saturday for a Belleville City Council candidate who died last week shortly after he had filed his petition to be on the April 6 ballot.
Walter Hood Jr., who was 53, died of a heart attack on Dec. 22, according to his son, Walter Hood III.
Walter Hood Jr., who often attended City Council meetings to follow the latest actions taken by city leaders, posted on Facebook on Dec. 14 that he filed his petition to run for alderman in Ward 8 in west Belleville that morning.
“After years of complaining and nothing being done, today I stopped complaining,” he wrote. He added that he was “more than ready for the challenge”
Walter Hood III said his father worked to help others.
“He loved his community,” Walter Hood III said. “He wanted to get involved in any way that he could, whether it was running for office or being part of different committees. He wanted to ensure that the community was safe and his constituents were taken care of.”
Walter Hood Jr. served as a member of the Belleville’s Crime Free Housing Committee and as a Democratic precinct committeeman.
As part of his campaign for the April 6 election, Walter Hood Jr. was working with Patty Gregory, who is running for mayor against Mayor Mark Eckert.
Gregory said Hood was a “very conscientious person and I think he would have been a great alderman.”
Eckert said he was saddened to hear of Hood’s death and he praised him for deciding to run for alderman.
“I have respect for anybody that puts their name on a ballot … because that takes a commitment,” Eckert said.
State law regarding deaths of candidates
Hood died after the registration period for candidates ended on Dec. 21.
A spokesman for the Illinois State Board of Elections said state law does not address this type of case in which the candidate died after the registration period ended but before the election.
“There is no process for filling the vacancy in that instance,” spokesman Brian Pryor said in an email.
Hood was running as an independent. If Hood had been a member of a local political party, the party could have named another candidate to take his place on the ballot by Jan. 27, Pryor said.
Belleville City Clerk Jenny Gain Meyer, who is tasked with collecting Belleville candidate petitions and certifying the candidates by mid-January, said she would consult with St. Clair County Clerk Tom Holbrook about the issue.
Memories of Walter Hood Jr.
Walter Hood III said his father worked for Veolia Environmental Services for about 20 years but had to step down because of health concerns related to a kidney transplant in 2016. Walter Hood Jr. also was a part-time bus monitor for East St. Louis School District 189, where his father, Walter Hood Sr., had served as a principal.
“He had a lot of personality,” Walter Hood III said of his father. “He had plenty of personality. He was straight forward to the point, you know ... no nonsense.”
He described his father as a “social butterfly” who would have a conversation with anyone on all types of issues, including politics and sports.
“He was a die hard Pittsburgh Steelers fan,” Hood said of his father. “He was always rooting for them to go to the Super Bowl.”
And his sense of humor was “through the roof,” he said. Walter Hood III said his father could always find humor in all types of circumstances.
Funeral arrangements
The visitation will be 9 a.m. to 11:15 a.m. Saturday at Pilgrim Missionary Baptist Church at 1121 Dr. M.R. Lemons Blvd. in East St. Louis. Visitors will be asked to wear a mask and practice social distancing. A private funeral service will immediately follow the visitation.
