May 25, 2007

Chapter Member Jim Hekel Passes Away

By: DAVID POPIEL
Source: The Newport Plain Talk
 

Funeral services for Jim Hekel, Plain Talk managing editor who died on Friday, will be this Tuesday at Northport Baptist Church in Newport. The Iowa native had joined the newspaper's news staff in April 2006. He apparently suffered a fatal heart attack early Friday morning at his home at 385 Walnut Street.
The family will receive friends from 5 to 7 p.m. at Northport Baptist Church with the funeral service at 7 p.m., officiated by the church's pastor, Brother Wade Holbrook. Graveside services will be on Wednesday at 11 a.m. at Union Cemetery.

He was born April 5, 1961, at Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and graduated from Shellsburg High School in 1979. After graduation he joined the Army and served in Virginia, Missouri, Indiana, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and West Germany for a total of 10 years.

Journalism was his interest and work during a 10-year career as a US Army journalist, graduating from the Defense Information School at Fort Benjamin Harrison, Indiana in 1979. He completed the Mauck-Stouffer writing seminar at the University of Iowa in 2001.
He married Karen on December 27, 2003 at Dubuque, Iowa. They later moved to Indiana where Jim served as managing editor for a group of newspapers near Southbend-the Pilot News in Plymouth.

Before that Hekel was news editor of the Dyersville Commercial and Cascade Pioneer, both weekly newspapers in Eastern Iowa. During 2001-2002, he served as assistant metro Iowa editor for the Cedar Rapids Gazette; he was editor of the Independence Bulletin-Journal. Hekel also had worked as editor of the Mt. Pleasant News in Iowa; news editor of the Fort Dodge Messenger in Iowa; assistant news editor of the Danville Register & Bee in Virginia; editor of the Dinwiddie Monitor in Virginia; and editor of the Tidewater News in Virginia. He maintained a life-long interest in baseball and sports, as a writer and fan. He was passionate about his church service, and in recent years took a keen interest in and supported cancer research.

In addition to his wife, Jim Hekel is survived by his parents: Glen Robert Hekel and Maxine (McVey) Hekel, of Shellsburg, Iowa; children: Hilary Hekel, of Ft. Drum, New York; Jimmie and Eli Hekel, both of North Little Rock, Arkansas; and Mandy Smith, of Salisbury, North Carolina; brothers: Gary Hekel and wife, Jean, of Shellsburg, Iowa; Jeff Hekel and wife, Tracy, of Shellsburg; sister, Marlene Lucas and husband, Robin, of Minnesota; several nieces and nephews. After the funeral at the church there will be a fellowship at the church. Anyone who wishes to bring food to share with the family and friends my do so on Tuesday afternoon before the visitation. Manes Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Copyright Rice-Russell (Tennessee) SABR Chapter 2007