THE REVEREND NEAL PRECHT, age 72 years, a resident of the Blackman Heights Community, Hambleton, WV, departed this life Saturday evening, April 11, 2015 at his home, with his family by his side, following a courageous battle with cancer.
He was born Friday, June 19, 1942 at Seattle, Washington, a son of the late Harold Ernest Precht and Doris Ruark Precht DeHoog. On December 23, 1966 at Gaithersburg, MD, he was married to the former Carroll Helmick, who survives.
Also surviving are one daughter, Roxanne Bright of Hambleton, WV; and one sister Virginia Johnson of Glenwood, IL.
He was a graduate of McLoughlin Union High School with the Class of 1960. He was a Veteran of the United States Air Force, serving during the Vietnam Conflict, and retiring with twenty-six years of service as a Senior Master Sergeant. He attended the University of Maryland and was a graduate of Southern Illinois University with a degree in Industrial Engineering. He served as Pastor of the United Methodist Church with the St. George Charge. He was a former EMT and a member of the Parsons Lions Club. Neal was an avid Ham Radio Operator, going by the ham name KG8YGZ and he enjoyed electronics.
The family received friends at the Lohr & Barb Funeral Home of Parsons on Tuesday from 5 to 8 p.m. Final rites will be conducted at the funeral home parlor on Wednesday, April 15, 2015 at 12:30 p.m. The Rev. Mike Estep will officiate and interment will follow at the Bethel Cemetery at Holly Meadows, where the H.W. Daniels Post #29 American Legion, the Tygart Valley Post #3647 Veterans of Foreign War and the Tucker County Veterans Association will conduct full military honors. The Lohr & Barb Funeral Home is in charge of the arrangements for THE REVEREND NEAL PRECHT. Condolences may be expressed to the family at; www.lohrbarbfuneralhome.com.