William M Hornbeck

William Marion Hornbeck, age 98, of Belpre, Ohio, died Tuesday, June 11, 2019 in Virginia. He was born on Good Friday, March 25, 1921, in Bellaire, Ohio to Winfield M. Hornbeck and Clara Jane Cox Hornbeck. He grew up in the Middlebourne and Parkersburg areas of West Virginia and graduated from Parkersburg High School in 1940.

Following graduation, Marion joined the Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC) and was sent to Bridger, Montana, where he learned typing and radio communications. In November 1941, he joined the U.S. Army Signal Corps and earned the rank of T4 Sergeant. He served in the Aleutian Islands for 19 months and Anchorage, Alaska for two years. During this time, Marion was awarded the Meritorious Service Unit Plaque, Good Conduct Medal, American Defense Medal, Asiatic Campaign Medal, Aleutian Island Battle Clasp, and the Expert M-1903 and Expert Remington Rifle Medal with two clusters plus six overseas bars.

Following Army discharge in August 1945, Marion married Clara Ellen Williams. Together they raised three sons: James A. Hornbeck (Diana Wong) in Colorado, Wade M. Hornbeck (Ann Lane) in Virginia, and Brian K. Hornbeck (Kim Wills) in South Carolina. His family also included six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

Marion pursued a career in communications for the U.S. Government. He worked in Washington, D.C. at Navy CommCen for nine months and at Pentagon Army CommCen for 11 months as a teletype operator and message handler. In 1952, he worked at the U.S. State Department Special Facility as Top Secret Cryptographic Communication Operator for 11 years. In 1963, Marion transferred to FEMA as a Top Secret Communication Manager for 20 years in Cary, North Carolina. He retired in 1984 with 37 years of Federal Civil Service as a Communicator. Marion and Clara returned to the Ohio Valley area in 1988, settling in Belpre, Ohio.

Marion was proceeded in death by his wife, Clara, after 53 years of loving marriage; his brother, Clayton V. Hornbeck; a nephew, Stephen Hornbeck; a cousin, Helen Westfall; and many more relatives in the Parkersburg area.

A message from Marion:

''God blessed me with a good life in many ways. I enjoyed my work and I thank all my many friends. My wife provided me with a fine family including all her brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews. All my in-laws accepted me as family with love and fellowship; a wonderful blessing. Also, I wish to thank Tom Newberry and Shirley Thomas at Ren-Dor Bowling Lanes for providing a good playhouse for my second childhood, good coffee, good friends and good competitors. I am thankful for all these blessings.''

There will be a private entombment held at the convenience of the family.