Funeral homes often submit obituaries as a service to the families they are assisting. However, we will be happy to accept obituaries from family members pending proper verification of the death.
Robert Neil Byrne of West Frankfort, Illinois, passed away on Sept. 29, 2026, at the age of 75 in Herrin Hospital at 3:34 p.m.
Neil was born on April 28, 1951, in Herrin, Illinois, to Robert and Barbara Joy (Burton) Byrne. Neil spent his early life in West Frankfort, graduating from Frankfort Community High School in 1969. He graduated from Western Illinois University in 1973 before moving to Colorado Springs, Colorado, where he continued his education at the University of Colorado while serving as a police officer in Colorado Springs until his retirement in 1994. After retiring from the police department, he worked as a transportation manager in Colorado Springs until 2001, when he accepted a position with the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) in Cascade Locks and Portland, Oregon. He served as both an enforcement manager and a safety specialist with ODOT while living in the small Columbia river town of White Salmon, Washington. He retired for the last time in 2014 and returned to his hometown after an absence of 44 years.
He was preceded in death by his parents.
Neil is survived by his wife, Claudia Byrne; a son, Michael Byrne; a daughter, Kelly Byrne; and former stepchildren, Erika Stensen and Ryan Stenson.
A memorial service will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 28 at 1 p.m. in the Union Funeral Home, West Frankfort, with Mother Sherry Black officiating, and those who knew Neil are invited to attend. A time of visitation will be held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. prior to the service. In lieu of flowers, Neil asked for contributions to the Colorado Springs Police Protective Association’s fallen officer fund at 516 N. Tejon St., Colorado Springs, CO 80903, or to the SIH Cancer Center, 1400 Pin Oak Drive, Carterville, IL 62918.
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd,
racist or sexually-oriented language. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another
person will not be tolerated. Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone
or anything. Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism
that is degrading to another person. Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on
each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness
accounts, the history behind an article.
(0) entries
Sign the guestbook.
Log In
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.