Billy Joe "Bo" Koskie (86) of Flora

Billy Joe “Bo” Koskie, 86, of Flora, Illinois, answered God’s call to come to work at 1:04 pm Monday, June 6, 2022 at the Burge House in Flora, Illinois.

Bo was born to Fred and Gladis Koskie on November 28, 1935, while the turkey spoiled in the sink on that Thanksgiving Day. Bo grew up in Flora and graduated from Flora High School in 1953. He played on both the football and basketball teams. Go Wolves! After graduation, he set out to see the world through the eyes of the oil field, which he did. He managed offices for Baker Hughes on 5 continents and ran 53 small and large country offices for over 30 years. Working in the oil field was Bo’s life, and he loved every minute it. He always had stories to tell of his time working in those fields. He once helped drill a water well in the Sahara Desert for the Bedouins tribe who were dying because their water was so bad. Rumor has it he might have even charged that well to his expense account. He built a grinding plant on Mos A Limbo Island for Baker Hughes where the Head Hunters tribes live. He helped get all of Baker’s Offices out of Iran when they overthrew the Shah and also, helped kill all of the oil field fires in Kuwait when they were invaded. He worked with and trained hundreds of Engineers, so everyone knew him. Bo ended his career working in Centralia, Illinois for Schwartz Oilfield Service. When you look up to the sky and see a big white cloud with a hole in the middle it probably will mean that Bo has convinced God to start drilling for souls.

Bo is survived by his wife, Barb Koskie; 3 daughters, Kisa (Kenneth) Roberts, Gail Koskie, and Marcia (Mike) Genthe; one brother, Richard (Eileen) Koskie; 3 grandchildren, Nicholas Helfrich, Cole Helfrich, and Jenna (Nathan) Hargis, 4 great-grandchildren, Catherine Helfrich, Riot Helfrich, Delilah Helfrich, and Brady Zimmerman; 3 step great-grandchildren, Jack, Josie, and Jasper Hargis, and many nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Fred and Gladis Koskie; siblings, Fred Koskie, Jr., Aletha Koskie, Earl Koskie, Ruby Hurst, and Thelma Agnes.

There will be no public services held at this time, and a private family burial will be held at Elmwood Cemetery, in Flora. There will be a Celebration of Life service held this fall in Flora. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made in Bo’s memory to Clay County Ministerial Alliance Food Pantry, Fur-A-Good Paws, or the Xenia Christ United Church, and will be accepted through the funeral home. The McGriff & Triplett Funeral Home in Flora is entrusted with the services. To sign the guestbook online or share a memory please visit by clicking here.