John R. Hinkle, 86, of Salem, passed from his earthly home Wednesday, March 29, 2017. He joins his father, Charles Raymond Hinkle; mother, Leah Beall Hinkle; sister, Celestine Rhind Hinkle; brother-in-law, Charles William Rhind; along with his two furry friends, “Duke”, his Weimeraner, and “Count”, his Chesapeake Bay Retriever. Left to cherish his memory is his loving and supportive wife of 63 years, Lois Heishman Hinkle. He is a native of Cumberland, Maryland and a graduate of Alleghany High School where he was well-known as “Buckshot”. As a young man, he worked with his father as a carpenter, which later established his hobby in designing beautiful objects of wood. John served in the U.S. Army during the police action in Korea with the 45th Infantry. He obtained his B.S. degree in Building Construction from Virginia Tech in 1957 through his G.I. Bill. John worked with Graves Construction; T.C. Britton; Creative Construction; and J.H. Fralin & Son in the Roanoke area as well as various parts of North Carolina and Virginia. He built several tower installations for the C & P Telephone Company, as well as schools and business buildings in and around the Roanoke area. He is a Master Mason of the East Gate Lodge 216 AF & AM based in Cumberland, Maryland. He was also a member of The Scottish Rite Valley of Cumberland and The Kazim Temple of Richmond. John was an avid hunter, fisherman, shooter, and conservationist. He was a life member of the American Trap Shooting Association, a member of The Single Action Shooting (SASS), a former member of The International Brotherhood of Single Action Revolvers (ISBAR), a member of Isaac Walton League, as well as American Legion Post 03 and VFW Post 1264, and an endowment life member of the NRA. He organized the Big Lick Long Rifles who are still active and shoot at a Floyd, Virginia range. His muzzle-loading rifles that he designed from a block of wood can attest to his woodworking skills. John and Lois loved fishing from their off-shore boat, the “Osie Ain” in the Chesapeake Bay area. After selling the big boat, they downsized to smaller fishing boats and spent many happy weekends with his dedicated fishing partner, Jack Reynolds, from Richmond. His God-given talent, working with wood, will be his legacy at College Lutheran Church in Salem where he has been a long time member. His unique portable altar stands in the church chapel along with his creative candle sticks, crosses, easels, and church directional signs. The beautifully designed baptismal font, representing the Triune God, is placed in the center of the church nave in loving memory of his parents, Raymond and Leah Hinkle. John was a cancer survivor. He endured many operations as a result of his disease, he later developed COPD. He jokingly said he was a “graduating member of Good Samaritan Hospice” in 2010. He no longer will be tethered to oxygen supports that he was enduring 24/7 for the last 10 years, which has been a continuous struggle each day. But John was a trooper and each time he would bounce back from his hospital stays. The loving care for John by the staff at Lewis-Gale Medical Center is greatly appreciated as well as his doctors at Physicians Associates in Roanoke and Salem in their support and comfort to both John and Lois. A celebration of John’s life will be held at College Evangelical Lutheran Church, 210 South College Ave, Salem, 24153, on Saturday, April 1, 2017 at 11 a.m. with The Rev. Richard Bansemer and The Rev. Dwayne Westermann officiating. A visitation will be held one hour prior in the church’s chapel prior to the service. An interment will be in the Columbarium at the church. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Saint Francis Service Dogs Foundation and College Evangelical Lutheran Church Memorial Fund. The charcoal drawing in John’s obituary was commissioned to Linda Bostic Smith, a well-known local artist to depict his rugged outdoor appearance and his love of guns. Online condolences may be expressed to www.johnmoakey.com.