William Leverne Hilbert

William Leverne Hilbert, born in Denver, CO on September 12, 1918, passed away February 24, 2011. He is preceded in death by his parents, William Henry Hilbert and Irene Aurelia Snyder; His wife Edith Virginia Steinmetz; Brother Robert F. Hilbert and his daughter Karen Virginia Hilbert. William went to high school at St. Joseph's in East Denver and graduated in 1937. He worked as a teller at Central Bank and Trust Company of Denver. William enlisted in the Army Air Corps in 1943. As an aviation cadet, he trained as navigator, trained pilots and navigators, and was commissioned as an Air Traffic Service Officer. William separated from active service as 1st Lieutenant, Army Air Corps in December of 1945 and immediately was appointed 1st Lieutenant in the Air Corps Reserves. In 1953, he joined the US Air Force Reserves and retired as Major in 1978. William achieved a BS in Aeronautic Administration from Denver University in June of 1947. He began working for Monarch Airlines as a dispatcher in 1947. Later, Monarch merged with two other local airlines to become Frontier Airlines. William worked as a dispatcher for Frontier and later flight operations manager until his retirement in 1983, so his post-war working life coincided with almost all of the life of Frontier Airlines. William married Edith Virginia Steinmetz on November 26, 1944. They had two children Karen Virginia Hilbert and David William Hilbert. Aside from military service, Bill lived all his life in East Denver or Aurora. He volunteered with the Colorado Civil Air Patrol for many years. Bill was a committed Catholic and gave generously to the church and was a Eucharistic minister at St. Thomas Moore Church in Centennial, CO. Memorial contributions in Bill's name are being suggested to Colorado Public Radio. Visit this link http://www.cpr.org/article/Contact#load_article|legacy-cpr-342, and follow instructions on how to make your donation. Please share your memories of Bill and condolences with his family by selecting the ""Sign Guestbook"" link.