Wilbur "Gene" Hill passed away on August 14, 2020. Gene was a charter member of the Rotary Club of Ankeny having joined the club in January 19, 1973. He left the club in 2011 after 38 years of membership. As it stated in his obituary, "Gene was a founding member and a past president of Ankeny Rotary Club as well as a recipient of the prestigious Paul Harris Fellowship Award".
Wilbur "Gene" Hill was born July 27, 1928 in Webster City, IA and graduated from Stanhope High School in 1946. He then then went on to play basketball at Webster City Jr. College for a year prior to being drafted into the U.S. Army. He was stationed at Camp Carson Colorado for nine months before he received a medical discharge. He met the love of his life, Kathryn Jane Swanson, in 1947 and they were married on July 20, 1951 in Dayton, IA. Gene and Kathryn recently celebrated their 69th wedding anniversary. Gene joined the Iowa Highway Patrol in 1953 and served 40 years retiring as a Lieutenant in 1993. While on the patrol, he was in charge of the State Patrol Chaplains Program.
