Dr. Walter C. Hancock

Dr. Walter C. Hancock, of Newburgh, Indiana, in his 88th year of life, walked through the gates of Heaven on Thursday, September 4, 2025, 8:05 p.m. at Ascension St. Vincent Hospital – Evansville, Indiana. His family was present when he took leave.

Dr. Hancock was born in Kentland, Indiana to Walter Clarence and Cecile Hancock, who preceded him in death, as did his siblings Patricia Griffith, Gary Hancock, and Richard Hancock. 

Dr. Hancock began his life in abject poverty, a condition from which he never fully recovered. In addition to the financial insecurity, there was no emotional security or warmth of a loving home...but he had three things going for him His love for God, a bevy of uncles and his intelligent mind. His life is one of humility and humor, blessings and success. His uncles, through the years, would pick young Walter and take him with them to job sites for their various jobs...repair, replace, rewire, etc…all life skills that would suit him later in life in all kinds of ways including working weekends as a Licensed Master Carpenter when in the Chicago College of Medicine and Surgery to earn additional monies. His Grandmother was a very religious woman and a bit of stability for him and his siblings in their very unstable world. So his love of God, and perhaps fear of God, came from her. In those days, houses had alleys behind them and in the backyard of each there would be a "burn pit'' where you burned your rubbish at the end of the day. One day Walter had done something that his Grandmother did not approve of and so she told him that he should be very mindful of his behavior. Did he not know that "the first-time people misbehaved, God had to punish His children and so He sent a flood. The next time, it is said, it will be fire." From that time on, when Walter would smell a fire as a child, he just knew that day had arrived!

The third thing he had going for him was his mind. He was extremely bright and inquisitive! That got him into difficulties now and then as a child - Like the day he decided that he wanted to know just how dark it is inside an empty ice box sitting on the front porch--with the door closed. He climbed in, closed the door, observed that it was very dark, and then realized it would not open from the inside. Luckily, he had good lungs...and a lot of uncles...and rescue was swift!

Another time, he and his brothers decided to install a pulley from the second floor window of the barn to the ground. They constructed the pulley, attached a basket to it, and convinced a chubby kid from down the block to be the first to try it. The basket was installed, the kid got in, and the pulleys worked   but the basket didn't! The chubby kid dropped out of the bottom of the basket and the Hancock brothers ran home convinced that the kid was dead. No more pulleys, no more baskets, and the chubby kid was a lot smarter than before!

Starting life on the poor side of the tracks may tend to color perception of a child and Dr. Hancock was told clearly that he was not college material. Upon graduation, he enrolled at Indiana State University and four years later graduated with a Business degree! However, he wound up in a classroom as Teacher and then as Principal at a school in Watsekah, Illinois, just down the road from Kentland-that little town where he was born, which to someone driving from Evansville, is where you take a stop for gasoline and a coke. You see, his life was one of seemingly bouncing from one arena of life to another...adding layers and changing the forecast of his life. Teaching was not his passion. Something having to do with healing was tugging at his heartstrings and precipitated his entrance into and graduation from Illinois College of Podiatric Medicine and Chicago College of Medicine and Surgery in May, 1973. He also qualified for and satisfied a Surgical Residency, being exposed to and learning advanced surgical techniques concerning issues of the foot and ankle. From there, he opened offices in both Evansville and Jasper where his expertise was critical and where he spent his time until the summer of 2023. He so enjoyed the drive to his Jasper office on Tuesdays and Thursdays. He drove the back roads where the wild asparagus grew, where the Amish communities were, what the farmers were raising and where the antique stores were situated along the way!

Dr. Hancock had surgical privileges at all Evansville Hospitals, as well as those in Jasper and other area hospitals in between. He was appointed and served on the National Board of Podiatric Medical Examiners from 1987 to 1997 and served as President of the National Board from 1996-1997. He has also been honored as Warrick Hospital Outstanding Physician. Not bad for a child who started with no choices except for God, a bevy of uncles and a bright mind!

Lots of changes in this man: From the throes of poverty to the blessings and riches of the spirit. From Scrooge to Father Christmas. From thinking all animals belong outside to giving lap and bed space to a certain little red poodle! And the most amazing change of all: He did become a "doctor'' who morphed into a "healer.'' A world of difference in the two in his mind as the "healer" does far more for a patient than the "doctor.'' He loved it when a patient would talk to him about their relationship to God and he could talk about his. That may be the reason why he chose to practice as long as he did. This young man from a poor family, due to the education he received in Chicago, brought techniques and surgeries by a podiatrist to the hospitals in the areas where he practiced that they had never seen. His patients thrive and loved him. And he loved them. You may have known the man, but now you know that little boy who, against all odds, became a success-in the eyes of his peers, his patients, and his Heavenly Father. "Rest in peace, good and faithful servant."

Walter leaves behind in addition to his wife, Sherry; his daughters, Merry Peak, Sherry Dart (Ron), Anne Garrison, and Robyn Russell Stewart (Robert); sons, David Hancock (Robin) and Christopher William Russell (Kelly); grandchildren, Jessica Peak, Jarred Peak (Megan), Stephanie Simon (Tanner), Austin Lutz (Holly), Noah Hancock, Katherine Marie Stewart, Ryan Dennis Stewart, Kyle Russell, Dane McDonald, Jacob Dart (Sara), Lynsey Harper (Bobby), Andrew Garrison, Michael Duckworth (Amanda), and Noah Hancock; Preston Maravich (Milan and Abby, parents) became a precious addition to the family as well; numerous great grandchildren came as icing on an already beautiful cake, as did the long and enduring friendship of Bill W.

Friends may visit to say their goodbyes on Friday, September 12, when visitation will be from 4:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m.. Visitation on Saturday, September 13, will be from 11:00 a.m. until 12:00 Noon with Funeral Services immediately following. All will  be held at Boone Funeral Home East Chapel – A Family Tradition Funeral Home, 5330 Washington Avenue, Evansville, Indiana with Ministers David Schwambach and Steve Schwambach officiating. Burial will be at Park Lawn Cemetery with Pastors Paul Cavander and Gerald Carter officiating.

A Live Stream will be available beginning twenty minutes prior to the service time. Please visit www.boonefuneralhome.net, select your loved one’s obituary, scroll to the bottom of the page, and click Live Stream.

Memorial Contributions may be made to: Bible Fellowship Hour at Trotter House, 4924 Plaza East Boulevard, Evansville, IN 47715; Camp Ondessonk, 3760 Ondessonk Road, Ozark, IL 62972; or 1on1 Church, 6501 Madison Avenue, Evansville, IN 47715.

Boone Funeral Home is honored to serve the family of Dr. Walter Hancock. Condolences may be made to the family online at boonefuneralhome.net

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