Michael B. Rothe, 62 of Urbana died at 9:27 a.m. Thurs. March 1, 2007 at Provena Covenant Medical Center, Urbana.

Memorial services will be held at a later date. Renner-Wikoff Chapel and Crematory is in charge of arrangements.

Mr. Rothe was born on Nov. 15, 1944 in Leopoldzein, East Germany, the son of Alfred and Irene Langhammer Rothe.

Survivors include a sister; Barbara Resimont of Altus, AR and two brothers; Klaus Rothe of Berne, IN and Peter Rothe of Mexico.

He was preceded in death by his parents.

Michael Rothe came to WILL -FM in 1984 as host of a daily classical music program and a weekly jazz program. He was known for his soothing, authoritative presentation and his thorough command of languages and of the classical and jazz repertoire. After leaving WILL, Mr. Rothe became nationally known through his work for WFMT's Beethoven Network out of Chicago. Mr. Rothe also traveled to Germany several times over the years to work for the international broadcast service Deutsche Welle. In recent years, he continued to work as an occasional host on WILL-FM, and was involved with the local performing arts community, contributing to educational activities of Krannert Center for the Performing Arts and local orchestras.

Condolences may be offered at www.renner-wikoffchapel.com.