Joseph Tin Hon Hee's Obituary
Joseph Tin Hon Hee, 86, of Honolulu, Hawaii passed away on Saturday, September 12, 2015 at his residence in Honolulu. He was born on March 21, 1929 in Honolulu, Hawaii to Hung Chow and Annie Hee. He was a retired mechanical engineer with the Federal Government (Navy) and a United States Marine Corps Veteran.
He attended St. Augustine, St. Patrick, and St. Louis High School where he graduated then moved on to further his education at Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo where he earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Mechanical Engineering. After serving active duty with the United States Marine Corps he spent an additional 35 years with the Federal Government as a Mechanical General Engineer. He retired in 1987 after serving 37 years.
After retirement he was involved primarily with volunteer work and some traveling. He lived in Kailua for 47 years and the last 11 in Honolulu near his childhood home. He was involved with ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers) for 26 years and a volunteer at Castle Medical Center in Kailua. He served in the United States Marine Corps from August 1951 to June 1953 during the Korean War. He attained the rank of Sergeant.
The important things in his life were his family, marriage, the birth of his three children and six grandchildren. He was a giving, loving, compassionate, and intelligent man. He enjoyed volunteering, woodwork, fishing, reading, and doing puzzles. A couple of his favorite songs were; Kanaka Wai Wai sung by Melveen Leed and He Punahele sung by Moe Keale and other Hawaiian Music.
He was married to Lorena L. Hee (Luke) on January 21, 1956 at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church. He was a member of St. Anthony’s Catholic Church in Kailua as well as St. Patrick’s Catholic Church in Honolulu.
He is survived by wife, Lorena Hee; sons, Jonathan and Michael Hee; daughter, Darla Gerharter; sister, Julia Lee and six grandchildren.
Visitation: 10:30 -11:15 a.m. on Wednesday, September 30, 2015 at Diamond Head Mortuary; Service to begin at 11:15 a.m. with a burial to follow: 2:00 p.m. at Hawaii State Veterans Cemetery in Kaneohe.
Family requests No flowers please
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