Jimmie D. Hill, 79, passed away peacefully at home on Tuesday, April 23, 2013 with the love of his life and wife of 57 years by his side. The Hills' made their home in McLean, VA for more than 30 years prior to relocating to Spotsylvania County in 2005. He is survived by his loving wife Martha; his son, William and his wife, Deanna of Dumfries, VA; and three daughters: Loretta Hill and Carol Alexander of Falls Church, VA and Patricia Parkitny and her husband, Casey of Austin, TX. He also had six grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. Raised in Corpus Christi, TX he entered the Air Force in 1951 and transferred to Washington, DC, in 1971 for duty with the CIA. For the next 25 years he served in several positions with the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), which had the mission of developing, building, and operating the nation's reconnaissance satellite programs. After more than 45 years with the Air Force and CIA, he retired in 1996 after serving 15 years as the NRO's Deputy Director and Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force. For his contributions to the national space program, he received numerous awards including the Presidential Distinguished Executive award in 1980 and 1988, the Defense Department's Civilian Distinguished Service Medal four times, the Legion of Merit, the National Intelligence Distinguished Service Medal, the Central Intelligence Agency's Distinguished Intelligence Medal, and the NASA Distinguished Service Medal. In 1996 he was chosen by the National Space Club as it's recipient of the Goddard Memorial Trophy and in 1998 was awarded the Goddard Astronautics Award from the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. At his retirement, the NRO dedicated the "Jimmie D Hill Conference Center" in his honor. Jimmie recently received the Founders Award as a visionary leader of the NRO; an award not given out since it was established in 2000. The family will receive friends from 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday, April 27 at Covenant Funeral Service, Fredericksburg. A private graveside service will be held at Arlington National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Fredericksburg Salvation Army, 2012 Lafayette Blvd., Fredericksburg, Va. 22401. Online guest book is at covenantfuneralservice.com

Published in The Washington Post on April 25, 2013