Hemphill

Lee "Junie" W. Hemphill, 88, of Chicora died Thursday at Butler Memorial Hospital after a short illness.

Born July 17, 1919, in Chicora, he was the son of Lee C. and Genevieve I. Parker Hemphill.

He was a veteran of World War II, serving as a corporal in the Army from 1943 to 1946. He received training in winter and mountain warfare including skiing and cold weather survival at Camp Hale, Colo.

He eventually served in Northern Africa and the European Theater with the 664th Topographical Engineers and saw action at Normandy in the Ardennes in the Battle of the Bulge and in the Rhineland.

Mr. Hemphill received several campaign medals along with the Peace Medal from the French government. As a member of the 3rd Army, he was privileged to serve as a guard and as a driver of Gen. George S. Patton Jr.

He received certification from the Cleveland School of Welding in 1942, and after the war, he used the skills he developed in the military to work as a mechanic for McCormick's garage for six years and bus service. He later worked at the Witco Chemical Corp. in Petrolia, beginning in 1953 and retiring in 1984.

He was a member of the Mater Dolorosa Catholic Church in Chicora. He was also a member of the American Legion Post 642 and the VFW Post 7876. He enjoyed gardening, playing cards and spending time with his grandchildren.

Surviving are his wife of 60 years, Betty J. Collier Hemphill, who he married Aug. 27, 1947; two daughters, Judith A. Hindman and her husband, William E., of Butler and Deborah L. Rice and her husband, Thomas E., of Chicora; three grandsons, Thomas E. Rice IIIand his wife, Christine, of Chicora, Bejamin L. Rice and Eric W. Hindman, both of Butler; one great-granddaughter, Emelia M. Rice of Chicora; and a number of nieces and nephews, including William Truscott of Rancho Cordova, Calif.

He was preceded in death by one sister, Doris Hemphill Truscott.

<B>HEMPHILL</B> — Friends of Lee "Junie"W. Hemphill, who died Thursday, Feb. 28, 2008, will be received from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. Sunday at <B>STEIGHNER FUNERAL HOME</B>, 111 E. Slippery Rock St., Chicora.A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at noon Monday at Mater Dolorosa Catholic Church, 409 N. Main St., Chicora, with Rev. David DeWitt, pastor, officiating. Burial will be in Hemphill Cemetery, Chicora.Military honors will be conducted by the Chicora VFW, the Chicora American Legion, and the 99th Regional Readiness Command of Coraopolis.In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorial donations be made to Mater Dolorosa Catholic Church, 409 N. Main St., Chicora, PA 16025.