Joe Robert Hawks Sr.

** CLICK WEB LINK ABOVE - TO VIEW VIDEO TRIBUTE  ** Joe Robert Hawks Sr., age 86 of Spearfish, died Friday February 3, 2012 in Evanston, Wyoming. Services will be held 11am Tuesday February 7th, 2011 at the Christian Life Center in Belle Fourche, with Pastor Paul Howard officiating. Visitation will be held one hour prior to the service. Inurnment will take place in the Bowman County Cemetery, in Bowman, ND. Funeral arrangements are with Funeral Home of the Northern Hills in Belle Fourche. Joe Robert Hawks Sr. was born August 5, 1925 in the “Bailey House” in Bowman, North Dakota. He was the son of Joseph and Madeline (Carlson) Hawks. Joe grew up in the Bowman area, where he attended school. Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, Joe enlisted in the U.S. Navy during World War II. He served his country two years, stationed most of the time at Pearl Harbor, assisting with cleanup efforts. Following his time in the Navy, Joe returned to Bowman where he was united in marriage to Joan Gross on August 5, 1947 at the Bowman United Methodist Church. To this union, their son J.R. was born. Following their marriage, Joe and Joan resided in Bowman. For many years, Joe served at various times in law enforcement. He worked for the City Police for 13 years and also served as deputy sheriff to Morrell McGee for a short time. For many years, Joe worked in the oil exploration industry. Joe worked for Precision Geophysical Engineering where he was responsible for the supervision of several seismic field crews, survey crews, and office personnel. He was a seismic shooter and driller, and he traveled many places with his family. In the 60’s, Joe purchased the Enco Gas Station in Bowman and in the early 1970’s, he worked as a sales rep. for Brutanza Engineering Factory, which manufactured snowmobiles. In 1992, Joe and Joan moved to Spearfish so they could be closer to their son and his family. Joan died in 1994. Later on, Joe became a special friend to Della Oreskovich and the two them enjoyed their companionship. Joe enjoyed his ranchette where he loved working with his horses, located near Spearfish. For the past couple years, Joe has enjoyed his winters in Arizona with Della and he has been blessed with her companionship. Joe will be remembered for his independent spirit, being honest and straight forward with people, and how he loved taking drives. He was a hard worker, and always found work to support his family. He built houses in Bowman with his son in the 1970’s, and that became a special memory. Joe loved his two granddaughters very much, and he will be greatly missed. Joe is survived by his son J.R. “Bob” (and wife, Terry) Hawks of Belle Fourche; 2 granddaughters, Bobbi (Scott) Grubb of Belle Fourche, Sammi (Justin) Newman of Belle Fourche; 4 great grandchildren, Levi and Kortni Grubb, and Hailey and Riley Newman, and his special friend, Della Oreskovich of AZ. Joe is also survived by sister-in-law, Sheala (Herb) Erickson of Bowman ND; and 3 nieces, Sherry (Elvin) Smith of Lamar, CO, Cindy Fitzgerald of Texas, and Ginger (Rick) Fretheim of Bowman, ND. He was preceded in death by his parents; wife, Joan; and sister, Betty Smith. Date of Birth August 5, 1925 Bowman, North Dakota Date of Death February 3, 2012 Evanston, Wyoming Funeral Service 11:00 A.M. – Tuesday – February 7th, 2012 Christian Life Center Belle Fourche, South Dakota Officiant Pastor Paul Howard Special Music The Wagoneers “In the Garden”, “Home Where I Belong” “Stroll Over Heaven with You” “Happy Trails” Military Honors Belle Fourche Veterans Honor Guard Inurnment Bowman County Cemetery Bowman, North Dakota