The Honorable William C. Hastings, 89, Lincoln, died Saturday, July 17, 2010. Born January 31, 1921 to Dr. William C. and Margaret (Hansen) Hastings in Newman Grove, Nebraska.
He graduated from Newman Grove High School in 1938. He received an undergraduate degree in business and his J.D., both degrees from the University of Nebraska. He served in the FBI and in the army in WWII. He was an Eagle Scout and assistant scoutmaster for Troop 21. He began his legal career with Chambers, Holland, Dudgeon, & Hastings. He was appointed Lancaster District Judge in 1965, to the Supreme Court of Nebraska in 1979, and Chief Justice in 1987 where he served until his retirement in 1995. He was a member of First Presbyterian Church where he was a deacon, member of session, trustee, and the Church Foundation (President) . He served on numerous boards in the community including: Child Guidance Center (President), Junior Chamber of Commerce (President), JCX, Lincoln Symphony , State Retirement Board, and Lincoln Parks and Recreation. He was a member of the Acacia Fraternity, a mason and a 33˚ Scottish Rite. He is a member of the Nebraska Jaycees Hall of Fame. He received the George Turner Pioneer Award from the State Bar Association, the Herbert Harley Award from the National Judicature Society, and numerous other awards and recognitions for community service and his leadership in the legal profession.
Survived by his wife of 63 years, Julie Ann, his daughter and son-in-law, Pam and Jim Carrier, Lincoln, his sons and daughter-in-law, Chuck and Jeanne Hastings, Hastings, and Steven Hastings, Barrow, Alaska, his grandchildren, Beth Hastings, Omaha, Diane Hastings, Lincoln, and her fiancé Dustin Lewis, Overland Park, KS, and Dan Carrier, Lincoln, nieces, nephews, and cousins. He was predeceased by his parents and his sister, Gretchen Dowling.
Memorials in lieu of flowers may be given to First Presbyterian Church Foundation or the Lincoln Parks and Recreation Foundation.
Memorial service: 10 a.m., Saturday (7/24/10), First Presbyterian Church, 840 S. 17th Street. Internment at a later date in Hope Cemetery, Newman Grove, Nebraska.