Bill Horne, Jr., 91, of Pensacola, FL, passed away on Monday, August 11, 2014 at 7:05am while in the care of Covenant Hospice located at West Florida Hospital in Pensacola, FL. He was a loving grandfather, a playful charmer to the end, and a true lover of life. He died at peace, with complete faith in God and Jesus Christ that he would be going to a higher place. One of two brothers and one sister, Bill was born in Jackson, MS on March 19, 1923 to Mr. and Mrs. William C. Horne, Sr. He lost his father at a young age, and the man Bill became was shaped by the strength, love, and fortitude of his mother, Nannie, who lived to be 100 years old. Bill, in youth as in old age, was independent, confident, and a romantic at heart. At 18 and just about to enter the armed forces as a gunner in a bomber crew, Bill met the love of his life, Eleanor "Babs" Slocum Horne. They were married for 57 years. Bill was entirely devoted to Babs, even years beyond her death in 2001. He was never shipped overseas, gratefully. Babs and Bill had three girls, Billie Lee, Pat "Sissie", and Judy "Bugg". They raised their family in Jackson, where they had continued to live since their marriage. Bill entered the construction business after his service in the armed forces, and he eventually created and ran a successful contracting firm. He retired from his work at a young age, and Bill and Babs began their retirement years in their home in Jackson, which Bill had designed and built. They moved to Pensacola in 1993 to be closer to family. Bill and Babs spent their later years enjoying their family and fulfilling their passions for life. They travelled the Rocky Mountains of the Western U.S. extensively and held a special fondness for the deserts of Sante Fe, NM. Bill was an avid painter whose oil paintings of mountain landscapes and the old churches of the Southwest are treasures to family, friends and art buyers alike. He was a gardener, and he lovingly tended the flowers, cactus and citrus trees around his homes throughout his years. He loved drinking red wine and partaking of good food. He was a poet and a teller of stories. He was a self-purported expert at, welleverything. He was a flirt to all waitresses, and surely some nurses as well. He was a listener and an advisor. He was stubborn, and he could frustrate the best of us. But he could always make us laugh. Babs and Bill enjoyed much happiness in their lives, yet, as anyone who truly lives life, they did suffer tragedy. It was the love that Bill and Babs had for each other, as well as their faith in God, that saw them through the hard times. His surviving daughters, Billie Lee Keyes and Pat Holcomb, as well as his niece, Leslie Ellington, who was much like a daughter to Bill, all now have their own children and grandchildren. Bill was grandfather to Tammy Keyes Hodgins, Barry Wayne Holcomb, Jr., Julie Holcomb King, Ashley Diane Misleh and Joshua Roberts (deceased). He was also great-grandfather to seven. Each and every one of them, no doubt, has a story of "Pawpaw" that is forever a part of their memories and hearts. He was loved, and he will be missed. If such a thing exists, and Pawpaw were to come back to this world as anything, perhaps he would be an aspen treeHe could grow tall beneath the Western mountains, tightly connected to his family and friends. He could glow golden in the fading light of autumn. And, when the wind blows, as it always does, he would twinkle with the light that God provides shining through his leaves. He would love that. Committal Service will be held at Lakewood Memorial Cemetery in Jackson, MS on Friday, November 7, 2014 at 11:00am.