In Memory

Kenneth Bruce Hills - Class Of 1933

Kenneth Bruce Hills

Lieutenant Colonel Kenneth B Hills, USAF Retired, 88, died November 26, 2001 at an Ellsworth, Maine hospital. He was born August 21, 1913 in Iowa Falls, Iowa, the son of Fred and Zelma Strother Hills.

Kenneth attended the University of Oregon on a basketball scholarship. He raced as a member of the national team for Harley-Davidson Motorcycle Company during the 1930s. He joined the Royal Canadian Air Force as an American volunteer in June 1941. He flew Spitfires and Mosquitoes as a member of the Royal Air Force, Squadron 519, before transferring to the US Army Air Corps in April 1943 as a fighter pilot flying P-51 Mustangs. He was awarded two Distinguished Flying Crosses, two Air Medals, and many other medals and commendations. He also received a personal commendation from King George VI of England for his service as an American volunteer in the Royal Air Force. Kenneth received a personal appointment from President Harry Truman as a regular officer in the United States Air Force. As a pilot in the Air Force, he served in World War II, the Korean War, and Vietnam. He retired from active service in January 1965. He was town manager for the towns of Winter Harbor and Castine, permanently retiring in 1972.

He is survived by his loving wife of 59 years, Betty Meynell Hills of Sullivan; three sons, Kenneth Meynell Hills and his wife, Darlene, Hollis Hills and his wife, Ellie, all of Sullivan, Donald Hills and his wife, Lilly, of Cape Elizabeth; one daughter, Suzanne Mace and her husband, Christopher of Machias. He was known as 'Bear' to his 10 grandchildren. He was predeceased by a grandson.

Ellsworth American, November 2001