Joseph Pierson Hanby, age 92, of Stuart, passed away Friday, October 21, 2016, at Blue Ridge Therapy Connection in Stuart.
He was born in Patrick County on January 5, 1924 and was a son of the late Hardin David Hanby and Nellie Howell Hanby. He was also preceded in death by his wife, Donice Hunt Hanby; an infant daughter, Joanna Hanby; a brother, David G. Hanby; and a sister, Hazel Hawks.
He graduated from Stuart High School in 1943 and left shortly thereafter for the Army where he served for 2-1/2 years during World War II. He was enlisted in the Army’s Amphibian Engineers, 593rd Engineer Boat and Shore Regiment and participated in three D-Day assault landings during the New Guinea campaign. He then served in the Philippines and with the occupation force in Japan.
He had been a member of Stuart Baptist Church for 55 years, and was a member of American Legion Post #105. He had been a deputy with the Patrick County Sheriff’s Department from the late 1940s to the late 1950s, and retired from J.P. Stevens with approximately 30 years of service.
Surviving are one daughter and son-in-law, Susan and Mike Painter of Danville; one grandson, Matthew Painter of Roanoke; a loving companion, Betty Holt of Stuart; a sister-in-law, Dean Hanby of Martinsville; a niece, Barbara “Bobby” Reed Hanby and husband Rod Acuff of Roanoke; and a nephew, Larry Hawks of Stuart.
Funeral services were held Sunday at Moody Funeral Home in Stuart with Pastors Robert Belcher and Joe Pauliks officiating. Burial, with military rites by the Patrick County Veterans’ Memorial Honor Guard, was in the Stuart Cemetery.
The family requests that memorial donations be made to Stuart Baptist Church, P.O. Box 472, Stuart, VA 24171. Online condolences may be sent by visiting www.moodyfuneralservices.com.
