Jackie Carl Hill

Jackie Carl Hill, age 91, passed away on Tuesday, July 28, 2020 in St. Louis County, Missouri.  He was born in Wellston, Missouri on December 17, 1928 to George and Mary Helen Hill (nee Ford).  

Jack is survived by 11 children: Bob (Shirley), Jerry (Terry), Susan (Rick) Stocke, Don (Diane), Joan Lepping , Ken (Anna), Nancy (Kevin) Flynn, Russ (Karen), John (Kerri), Gregg(Tracy), and Amy Grosvenor; 1 brother, William Dale (late Regina) Hill, 30 grandchildren, 38 great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, wife, Gloria Hill, a brother, George Hill, and a sister, Jane Betts.

It was the year before the stock market crashed sending the country into the Great Depression.  Like a lot of families, his family struggled to survive the depression.  The uncertainty of the times shaped the way he thought about work and the way he thought about family. It made him tough, loyal and self-reliant.

Luckily he was too young to fight in WW2. Shortly after the war, however he enlisted in the army and was shipped off to post-war Japan.  But his time there was cut short when he contracted Scarlet Fever.  In less than a year he was sent home with an honorable discharge.

Back at home in St. Louis he met Gloria Colvis, beautiful and sweet.  That is when life really began for Jack. From that moment, Gloria was the center of everything for him and they married a short time later on July 9th, 1949. He was 20 and she was 17. They remained completely devoted to each other throughout 48 years of marriage. And Gloria lived in his heart for 22 years after she died. Together, they brought 11 kids into this world and created a family environment that instilled in them that work ethic, toughness, tenacity and family loyalty that Jack and Gloria learned from their own parents during the depression.  It prepared all 11 of their kids to find their own successes and inspired each of them to be themselves.

That self-reliance he learned as a kid growing up during the great depression stayed with him throughout his life. He never doubted his ability and never backed down from a challenge. As economic hurdles presented themselves, Jack found a way to overcome them by inventing new tools and building businesses to provide income to support his large family. No small feat with 11 kids, but with a lot of hard work and ingenuity, he built a great life for himself and Gloria and wonderful childhood for their kids.

Jack was an entrepreneur, a Carpenter - member of Carpenters and Operating Engineers unions, and a WWII Army Veteran.  He married Gloria Colvis on July 9, 1949 in St. Louis who later died on May 29, 1998. Together they brought 11 children into the world and created an environment that prepared all of them to make their own successes while inspiring all to be themselves. 

Jack was a remarkable man. He was a loving husband to Gloria, the love of his life to whom he remained totally devoted throughout 48 years of marriage and who lived forever in his heart.  Devastated by her loss, 22 years ago,  he turned to writing poetry to share with the world the depth of their love. 

A self-made man, Jack was a builder and an inventor. Many families have been raised in homes that Jack built. As economic hurdles presented themselves, he found a way to overcome them by inventing tools and building businesses to provide income to support his large family. No small feat, but with a lot of hard work and ingenuity, Jack always put plenty of food on the table.

An innovator, too, he had a remarkable ability to envision something and possessed the skills to create whatever he envisioned. Whether it was the houses he built for his family, furniture he crafted to fill the rooms in those houses, the guitar he carved with hand tools, the artwork he produced, the go-cart he welded using scrap steel and an old lawn mower engine, the snow forts and ice rinks he built in the dead of winter – it was all him. With no formal training and little money, there was nothing he couldn’t do and he was selfless in making it happen for his family. His creativity never subsided. He was constantly learning – always thinking and teaching himself new things.

Even today, if you take a walk through his wood working shop you’ll find various jigs or other devices he made that you would have no idea what they’re for but you can bet they work just the way he intended.  Or if you take a walk through his house you’ll see the credenzas, tea tables, dining tables, you name it that he built in that shop and you’ll even see his original paintings on the walls of that house that Jack built.  

If there is one thing that was ever certain in this world is that Jack loved Gloria. And he loved her more than life itself. Everyone that knew Jack knew this fact. When Gloria passed away in 1998, Jack was devastated. The only consolation he could find was to put his thoughts into words and to put those words on paper.  Its at this time that he started writing poetry. Once again he applied that same toughness and work ethic to making himself a poet.

Jack was a brilliant man. He didn’t get it from books. Like everything else he acquired throughout his life, Jack figured it out himself. He grew up before computers and the internet but taught himself how to use them to express himself and explore a world he never visited. Through his poetry, he made friends around the world and it is through his poetry that one could gain rare insight into his mind. That’s because he wasn’t flamboyant. He was a private person and was always the man he wanted to be – the kind of man other men aspired to be.

Jack was a walking handbook on values and how to live. When it was important to him, there was little that could stop him. Only last year, while other men were sitting it out, he was dancing with the bride at his granddaughter’s wedding. He was a proud man and proud of his family. He was fiercely protective of them and took great pride in each one’s accomplishments. He was respectful and commanded respect from everyone. He was a good businessman, always professional and maintained a good reputation throughout his entire career. He was a responsible person, a law-abiding citizen, and never talked down to others. He judged a person on their merits. 

Jack was a model for what a man should be He left a rich legacy and his thumbprint on this world. His fortitude and strong will can be seen in his children and their children. He will be greatly missed. 

Private funeral services are provided by Pitman Funeral Home.

Memorials may be made payable to The American Cancer Society for cancer research in care of Pitman Funeral Home, P. O. Box 248, Wentzville, MO  63385