Lawrence A. Broquet

Lawrence A. Broquet 1927-2016

Larry Broquet, 89, passed away on November 28, 2016 after a brief illness. Born to Harold and Theresa Broquet in Detroit, MI, Larry served in the U.S. Army in Germany during WWII and came home to get his Masters in Education at Wayne State University. He started his career in educational television teaching world history at WVS Channel 56 in Detroit and that launched him on the adventure of a lifetime when he and wife Jean and their four children relocated to American Samoa. There he became a pioneer in the federal government-sponsored program to bring English and education to that American territory via televised lessons. The family stayed in Polynesia for four years and considered it a highlight of their lives. After a few years in Huntington, WVA, where Larry worked at Marshall University’s WMUL, the family moved to Springfield where Larry was an administrator at the Illinois Board of Education. He and Jean retired in 1989 and spent the next 12 years traveling to Alaska, China, Europe, Africa and New Zealand. They also returned to Samoa for another look at their beloved island.

During his Springfield retirement years Larry was a regular at local golf and poker games. He volunteered proudly as a Standardized Patient at SIU School of Medicine, helping to train new doctors to recognize symptoms of illness. He was a rabid fan of “Jeopardy!” and made it onto the national broadcast of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” in 1999, where, to his chagrin, his hometown was listed as “Springfield, Ohio.” He lived at Brenden Gardens Retirement Community in Springfield from 2009 to 2014, making many good friends and hosting “Lawrence Welk” watch parties.

Larry was a font of old jokes and always had a pun ready for every occasion. He wrote variety shows and song parodies and would perform them for anyone willing (or even unwilling!) to listen. His favorite melody was “The Battle Hymn of the Republic,” to which he wrote this lyric on a trip to Italy:

In Florence town, the arts abound, of that there is no doubt,
We walked the streets for hours on end and wandered all about.
We saw David and some others with their vitals sticking out.
And all the ladies smiled.

Larry and Jean were married for more than 50 years. He was her devoted caregiver during her long illness before she died in 2007. Larry is survived by his brother, Richard Broquet of Livonia, MI, four daughters, Kathy (and Jay Ansell), Carolyn, Chris and Karen (and Greg Krutsinger), six grandchildren, and his faithful cat Barack, along with dozens of nieces and nephews.

Visitation is 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 1 at Staab Funeral Home, 1109 South Fifth St., Springfield. A funeral service will be held at Staab at 8:30 a.m. Dec. 2. www.staabfuneralhome.com