William Wilds Hutchison, 88

SMYRNA - William Wilds Hutchison, of Smyrna, passed away on Saturday, March 22, 2008, at Washington Hospital Center, Washington, D.C., from complications following an experimental heart valve replacement procedure. He was 88.

A lifelong resident of the Smyrna–Clayton area, "Hutch" was the youngest of four children of the late William Hutchison and Mary Elizabeth (Streets) Hutchison.

He grew up on the family farm outside Clayton and graduated from John Bassett Moore High School.

Mr. Hutchison was an accomplished baseball and basketball player.

He attended Beacom College, Wilmington, where he met his future wife, Lena Brill.

He enlisted in the U.S. Army prior to World War II and served with distinction as the engineer/top turret gunner on B-17s, flying out of Grafton-Underwood Airfield in England.

Mr. Hutchison attained the rank of technical sergeant and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and Air Medal with three oak leaf clusters, having successfully completed more than 25 missions over Germany and the European theater.

Upon his return to civilian life, he joined the Delaware State Police, serving honorably until his retirement in 1965.

At the time of his retirement he had attained the rank of captain and was troop commander of Troop 3 in Dover.

Mr. Hutchison was a charter member of the Delaware State Police Federal Credit Union and continued to serve the state police as an officer and president of the State Police Retired Officers Association.

Following retirement he continued to manage his family farm and, with his wife Lena, purchased and operated Clayton Farm Service, providing services to farmers throughout the state of Delaware. He was considered an innovator in farming techniques and one of the first advocates of "no-till" farming, now considered a standard for farming conservation.

Mr. Hutchison also served as the first state agent for Federal Crop Insurance in Delaware.

He was active in his community, serving as an early president of the Smyrna-Clayton Little League.

He was appointed by former Gov. Sherman Tribbitt to serve as a commissioner to the Delaware Department of Corrections, and was active with the Delaware Farm Bureau and Garrisons Lake Golf Club.

Mr. Huchison was a member of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 8801, American Legion Post 14, and a past member of Harmony Lodge 13, A.F.&A.M.

In 1984, following the death of his wife, Lena, he retired again to pursue his passion for golf. He played golf long enough to experience several holes-in-one and to have successfully shot below his age.

It was through golf that he met and married Barbara Carstens. They married and spent time in Smyrna and Peoria, Ariz.

Mr. Hutchison was an active member of the Westbrook Village Association in Peoria and became an instructor in stained glass making after mastering the art.

He was preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Lena; a brother, Edward; and a sister, Harriet.

He is survived by his sister, Mary Brown of North East, Md.; his wife, Barbara of Smyrna; his children and their spouses, Hope Pritchard and husband Bob of Rehoboth Beach, William Hutchison Jr. of Dover, Jane Nashold and husband Kevin of Easton, Md., and Robert Hutchison and his wife Maureen of Troy, Mich.; a daughter-in-law, Carolyn Hutchison of Lewes; his grandchildren, Lauri Weeks and husband Chris of Rehoboth Beach, Rob Pritchard of New York City, Chela Hutchison of Seattle, Jason Nashold of Easton, Josh Nashold of Annapolis, Kevin Hutchison of Breckenridge, Colo., Bradley Hutchison of Troy, Mich., and Grace Hutchison of Chicago; and five great-grandchildren, who were the apples of his eye, Jack, Molly and Thomas Weeks and Macy and Lena Nashold.

He also shared his life and love with the family of his second wife, Barbara: Kim and Dave Murphy of Finksburg, Md., and their two children, Kyle and Krissy; Bobbi Lind and her two children, Steven Hopkins and Courtney Peters; and Phillip, Patty and Cameron Carstens of Las Vegas.

Funeral services will be 1 p.m. Saturday in Faries Funeral Home, 29 S. Main St., Smyrna, where friends may call beginning at 11 a.m.

Burial will immediately follow at Odd Fellows Cemetery, Smyrna.

Instead of flowers, the family requests contributions to Camp Barnes, c/o Delaware State Police Headquarters, P.O. Box 430, Dover, DE 19903-0430.