Henry Arnold Wilde Jr.

Henry Arnold Wilde, Jr, 87, of Hopewell, VA, died August 17, 2020. Born and raised in Washington, DC, Hank was the only child of the late Henry Arnold Wilde, Sr and Blodwen Gwendolyn Voigt Wilde. He was preceded in death by his wife of 60 years, Constance Faye Kirks Wilde. He is survived by his son Charles Arnold Wilde (Alex) of Washington, DC; daughter Susan Faye Wilde Kump of Hopewell, VA; and son James Louis Wilde (Erin) along with granddaughter Clara Gwendolyn Wilde and grandson Louis Jonathan Wilde of Arlington, VA.

Hank was a 1955 graduate of The Citadel in Charleston, SC and was commissioned as an officer in the United States Army in which he served for 20 years in the Ordnance Corps before retiring in 1975. His military service took him to Korea (twice); Selfridge AFB, MI; France; Aberdeen, MD; Romulus, NY; Huntsville, AL; Vietnam (twice) and Petersburg, VA. Hank was a veteran of two wars, the Korean Conflict and the Vietnam War. He received the Bronze Star Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal, the Joint Service Commendation Medal, and the Vietnam Service Medal with 4 Campaign Stars. After retiring from the Army, Hank was hired by the City of Hopewell where he served as the Lead Maintenance Engineer and later as the Director of Public Works until his retirement from the City in 1995.

As a resident of Hopewell for 43 years, Hank was very active in his community, serving as a Meals-On-Wheels volunteer; chair of the Hopewell Food Pantry; chair of the Hopewell-Prince George Red Cross; chair of the City Board of Zoning Appeals; and a member of the City Planning Commission. He was a member of The First Presbyterian Church where he served as a Sunday School Teacher, Elder and a Trustee. He was also an active member of the Hopewell Rotary Club. Hank was also an avid outdoorsman. He enjoyed fishing, hunting and gardening. He also had a tremendous love of cars and sports car racing all his life.
The family will receive friends from 3:00pm to 5:00pm on Sunday August 30th, 2020 at the Hopewell Chapel of J.T. Morriss & Son Funeral Home. A funeral service and interment will be held at a later date at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, VA where his wife, his parents and his uncle are interred. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The First Presbyterian Church of Hopewell at 1107 W. Broadway Ave Hopewell, VA 23860. Condolences may be registered at www.jtmorriss.com