Obituary of Hooker, Herbert Church

Herbert Church Hooker passed away on Sunday, July 19, 2020 at the age of 88. Herbert was born January 18, 1932 to George Cecil and Annie Hooker (Legette) in Plymouth, North Carolina.  He was the third of 6 children and was preceded in death by his parents and older brother Cecil McGowan Hooker. He leaves his other 4 siblings, Annie Mabel Mixon, Lucille Robbins, Thomas Hooker, and Sue Knowles. In 1951 Herb joined the Air Force and served for 4 years.  He was stationed in Okinawa during the Korean War where he served in the 309^th bomb group as an engine specialist on the B-29 Superfortress. After returning stateside, he completed studies at Spartan School of Aeronautics in Tulsa Oklahoma obtaining his airframe and powerplant license. In 1955, he married the love of his life, Beverly Jane Sanders and went to work for American Airlines as an engine specialist then moving into the new flight engineer program. He traveled the world with a fascinating career as a Professional Flight engineer where he could often be found serving as an instructor or check airman. Prior to his retirement in September 1993, he was an engineer on the big 747’s flying from Dallas Ft. Worth to Tokyo Japan. Herb was very active in the Masonic Lodge of Richardson, Texas where he served as Worshipful Master from 1982 to 1983 and became a 33^rd degree Mason. Herb was preceded in death by his wife, Beverly on January 1, 2017 and he leaves two children, Katherine Hooker Burress and husband, David, David Hooker and wife, JoEllyn, two grandchildren, Mathew Hooker (Leslie Hooker) and Morgan Behrens (Jay Behrens), and 3 great grandchildren. A private memorial service with family will be held in August. Please leave the family condolences and share memories on this website.