C.C. Wills standing among some of his Walnut Trees
C.C. Wills sitting at a book signing table with a copy of his book
C.C. Wills at his computer
C. C. Wills lives in the country just south of Danville at the edge of Westville on 23 acres he and his wife bought for their retirement home. Having retired from Kraft Foods after 35 years he decided it was time for something else in his life. Both C. C. and his wife like spending time with nature – not only do they have 12 acres of timber, they have also planted 300 Black Walnuts, 20 Pecans, and various other nut trees, with plans for more. Also, they put in 250 eastern Red Cedars for the deer and turkey. Having grown up in a family that hunted and fished not only for fun, but also to survive, his parents taught him values, work ethic, and the respect of others. He feels very blessed to have both of them. Having grown up in Champaign until he was 48, he and his family moved to Danville in 2002 and he is very busy enjoying his retirement!
Wills is a self-published author through FriesenPress. "Treasure in the Shawnee Hills" is his first attempt at writing , but most definitely will not be his last. He is in the process right now of writing a sequel to this book. He also has several other storylines in the works with hopes of becoming the author he believes his Grandmother would have liked to be. It is actually through her linage that part of this story was conceived - her line comes from a full blooded Cherokee Grandmother several generations back.
It was both his passion for coin collecting and his love of being in the woods that sparked the idea for this first story. He started collecting coins around 1992 although his interest in them came much earlier while he worked at the Dairy Queen in the sixties. He remembers finding buffalo nickles, mercury dimes, and an occasional Franklin or Kennedy half dollar...these coins are what created a desire to learn more about the coins and their history. Later he started collecting currency and it was a particular note from the Shawneetown Bank that helped him to choose this bank for his story.
As a young teen his father included him on deer hunting trips taken in the fall each year....location, the Shawnee National Forest. It was on these trips his love for the woods really grew. He was already used to being in that type of environment from their weekend trips every week to the local Sangamon River to fish. His father taught him alot about hunting and fishing during those early years. Later after Wills got married, he and his wife and their church friends took spring camping trips again down in the Shawnee National Forest. It was on these hunting and camping trips that Wills came to know the area where his story took place. That area can be very enchanting and definitely will grab you!
Wills is a self-published author through FriesenPress. "Treasure in the Shawnee Hills" is his first attempt at writing , but most definitely will not be his last. He is in the process right now of writing a sequel to this book. He also has several other storylines in the works with hopes of becoming the author he believes his Grandmother would have liked to be. It is actually through her linage that part of this story was conceived - her line comes from a full blooded Cherokee Grandmother several generations back.
It was both his passion for coin collecting and his love of being in the woods that sparked the idea for this first story. He started collecting coins around 1992 although his interest in them came much earlier while he worked at the Dairy Queen in the sixties. He remembers finding buffalo nickles, mercury dimes, and an occasional Franklin or Kennedy half dollar...these coins are what created a desire to learn more about the coins and their history. Later he started collecting currency and it was a particular note from the Shawneetown Bank that helped him to choose this bank for his story.
As a young teen his father included him on deer hunting trips taken in the fall each year....location, the Shawnee National Forest. It was on these trips his love for the woods really grew. He was already used to being in that type of environment from their weekend trips every week to the local Sangamon River to fish. His father taught him alot about hunting and fishing during those early years. Later after Wills got married, he and his wife and their church friends took spring camping trips again down in the Shawnee National Forest. It was on these hunting and camping trips that Wills came to know the area where his story took place. That area can be very enchanting and definitely will grab you!
