Helmer Jr., Walter S.

On January 18, 2011, Walter S. Helmer Jr., 87, passed away at his home in Blacksburg, Va. following a long illness. He was born in Cincinnati, Ohio to Walter and Marion Helmer. He graduated from Oak Park-River Forest High School, River Forest, Illinois and attended Coe College in Iowa. Walt served in the Army Air Force during World War II as a pilot, training navigators for missions in Europe. Following the war, Walt continued his lifelong love for flying, serving as a pilot for Pan American Airlines for several years. In 1955, he became Chief Pilot for the Mellon family of Upperville, Va. until his retirement in 1983. He and his wife, Jeanne, were members of Glade Church in Blacksburg and active members of the Hawthorne Ridge II Community at Warm Hearth Village. Walt volunteered for the last several years at Montgomery Hospital. Beloved husband of Jeanne M. Helmer, of Warm Hearth Village; predeceased by his first wife, Patsy J. Helmer, and daughter, Linda D. Baccus; loving father of Richard B. and Pam Helmer, of Mt. Rainier, Md. and Stephen R. and Susan Helmer, of Siler City, N.C., and son-in-law. Leroy Baccus. of Manassas, Va., and brother to Louise E. DeHerder, of Invergrove Heights, Minn. He is also survived by stepsons, Edward and Eileen Hutchinson (Scotia, N.Y.), John Leehman and Sandy Toensing (Blacksburg, Va.) and stepdaughter, Kathleen and Tony Mullens (Sandwich, Ill.) and by 16 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Memorial service to be held at Glade Church, 1600 Glade Rd., Blacksburg on Saturday, January 22, 2011, at 1 p.m. The family will receive friends immediately following the service at the Karr Activity Center at Warm Hearth Village in Blacksburg. Private interment services to be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions in Walt’s name may be made to Glade Church or to Carilion Hospice, 707 Randolph St., Radford, Va. 24141. Arrangements by McCoy Funeral Home, Blacksburg.