Spanning Urbana High School athletics to the Champaign County Fair, Mike Melvin’s legacy of improving integral elements of the community will be felt indefinitely.

Melvin, the president/CEO and director at Perpetual Federal Savings Bank from 1969 to 2021, passed away on Tuesday, April 2 in his Urbana home.

The Champaign County Fair grew by leaps and bounds during Melvin’s career at Perpetual, which was a dedicated and generous supporter of the junior fair.

“Mike was a big friend of the fair,” said Randy Leopard on behalf of the fair board. “I think he and his family loved the fair. He would come to us and ask how he could help make the fair better. Anything we needed, he was always there to help.”

A 1962 Urbana High School graduate, Melvin was also a fixture for years in the UHS press box at home football games, where he enjoyed volunteering his time and making sure everything ran smoothly with the other helpers in the box.

“If you asked him to do something, he helped out. He did announcing at games for us and the scoreboards, wherever we needed help,” said former UHS Athletic Director Chuck Raterman, who is now the Northeastern High School athletic director. “Mike and Perpetual were a huge help with our facilities. He meant a lot to the athletic department at Urbana and he will surely be missed.”

Many of Melvin’s acts of kindness were toward members of the community in times of duress. These quiet efforts to help others were a lesser-known aspect of his impact on the city and the county.

In business, Melvin led the growth of long-time community fixture Perpetual Federal Savings Bank into a publicly-traded company whose stock values increased markedly in the decades after going public. Melvin left the helm after Farmers and Merchants acquired Perpetual in 2021.

He was a long-time member of the Messiah Lutheran Church in Urbana, where his visitation and services will be held on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Melvin served in many roles in a variety of organizations, including: City Treasurer, the Urbana Rotary Club, secretary/treasurer of Rotary Manor, Inc., director of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Cincinnati, trustee of the Champaign County Library, Harmony Lodge 9, F&AM, Chapter, Urbana Country Club, long-time member of the sewing club and several other committees and boards throughout his lifetime.

“He was a pillar of the community,” said former Champaign County Common Pleas Court Judge Roger Wilson, a fellow Rotarian. “He had a legacy of leadership here that touched a lot of lives. I was honored to call him a friend.”

Melvin’s full obituary is in today’s edition and online.

A gathering of family and friends will be held from 4-7 p.m. on Tuesday, April 9 in Messiah Lutheran Church in Urbana.

His funeral service will be held at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, April 10 in the church with Pastor Ray Branstiter officiating.

Live stream will be available on the Messiah Lutheran Church Urbana Facebook and MLCUrbana YouTube page starting at 9:55 a.m.