Morton lawyer inducted into Senior Hall

Retired Morton attorney Ramon H. Mason, who will celebrate his 91st birthday on Jan. 19, was inducted into the Senior Illinoisans Hall of Fame during an Oct. 8 ceremony in the Governor’s Mansion.

Raised in Logan County, Mason worked in the family store in Atlanta until it was forced to close during the Depression. He was the first member of his family to earn a college degree.

Service as an Army captain during World War II delayed his legal education. He graduated from the University of Illinois College of Law in 1949, earning his way by teaching introductory economics. He also served during the Korean War.

A past president of the Tazewell County Bar Association and partner in Mason & Krieg, Mason practiced law in Morton from November 1949 until last July 1 – a career of almost 60 years that included a wide range of community contributions.

His law practice included tenure as attorney for the Village of Morton and school boards in Morton and Pleasant Hill. He was legal adviser to the campaign for the community’s first performing arts center and pro bono legal counsel to his church.

His interest in providing assistance to residents in need led him to become a co-founder of We Care, which has provided meals and transportation since 1975, and Project Daybreak, an adult day care initiative.

Mason also has supported the Morton Youth Council on Civic Affairs and served on the boards of Action Concepts, the Heartland Council, the Chamber of Commerce, the Community Chest, Morton Progress Inc. and the Community Bank of Hopedale.

Local institutions have recognized his leadership with a variety of honors that included a Distinguished Service Award, a Golden Pumpkin Award and a Longevity Award from the Chamber of Commerce.

A Paul Harris Fellow of Rotary International, Mason has been honored for his financial support of the Rotary Foundation, and he was named Better Banks of Illinois Director of the Year in 1995.

His other beneficiaries have included the Peoria Symphony Orchestra, the Bertha Franks Performing Arts Center, the Morton Community Foundation and Public Library, the Atlanta Library and Museum, and the Lakeview Museum of the Arts and Sciences in Peoria.

Mason is a member of the John E. Cribbet Society at the College of Law and a lifetime charter member of the National World War II Memorial Society.