John F. Hillenbrand

In loving memory of John F. Hillenbrand, October 4, 1948 – October 9, 2013: John F. Hillenbrand, 65, of Newburgh, IN joined his Lord and Savior on Wednesday, October 9, 2013. He was a native of and servant leader in Warrick County most of his life. John enlisted in the U.S. Army and served in Vietnam, and graduated from Columbus State University with a B.S. in Criminal Justice. His passion was serving the poor & disadvantaged, working more than 35 years in government, corrections, & community service. He started in the Warrick County Court System under Judge Donald Hendrickson as Chief Juvenile Probation Officer helping troubled youth. John continued his career for 15 years as Town Manager of Chandler, Indiana, expanding the town limits, giving life to the Industrial Park and laying the groundwork for the Community Sports Complex and Center. He was responsible for the multi-million dollar renovation of Chandler Utilities. He & his wife owned & operated Movietown Video & Collectibles during the 1990s. John returned to the Warrick County Courts in 2000 with the responsibility of developing the Office of Community Corrections. Most recently he served as Assistant Director of the Tri State Food Bank, organizing & implementing the weekend Youth Backpack Program, working the Kid’s Café, serving meals to ‘at risk’ inner city children, obtaining many grants to help fund the Food Bank which serves 33 area counties, & maintaining the Emergency Food Pantry System of Evansville. He was a member of the Indiana Association of Cities & Towns, having served as President. He was also a member of Newburgh Masonic Lodge, Hadi Temple, VFW & Retired Indiana Public Employees Association, and retired member of Chandler Jaycees & Chandler Kiwanis Clubs. He held offices in the Indiana Correctional Association, Indiana Municipal Management Association, Warrick County Local Development and Warrick County Poor Committee & Warrick County Clowns (now merged with Hadi Temple Funsters). His favorite pastimes included science fiction television and RPG gaming. John was preceded in death by brothers Thomas & Ronald. Surviving siblings are David Hillenbrand, Charles Hillenbrand & Suzan Senger all of Chandler, IN. He will be greatly missed by his loving wife of 44 years, Linda, daughters, Dawn Crowley (Ken) of Newburgh and Staci Marshall (Larry) of Georgetown, IN. He is survived by 4 grandchildren, John C Hillenbrand (Kelsey) of Evansville, Melissa Crowley of Newburgh, Grayson & Eleanor Marshall of Georgetown, IN and one great- grandchild, Chloe Rae Hillenbrand; parents-in-law, Ray & Betty Hallenberger & brother-in-law, Don Hallenberger. Many thanks to Dr. Ahmed & Southern Care Hospice for comfort during the final months. A Celebration of Life will be held at 7:00 PM, Tuesday, October 15, 2013, at Alexander Newburgh Chapel, conducted by Carrie Hatchett. Friends may visit Tuesday, 6-8 PM at the funeral home. Please consider making a gift in John’s name to the Warrick County Community Foundation, P.O. Box 215, Boonville, IN 47601, to honor his commitment to Warrick County. All proceeds will support the Chandler Weekend Youth Backpack Program.