Rachel Hill

Rachel Louise McCastlain Hill, age 85, of Pocahontas County, died Sunday, April 24, 2022, at home surrounded by loving family.
Rachel was born in Fulton, Kentucky, December 30, 1936. Her father, Morris Shepherd McCastlain, from Holly Grove, Arkansas, was a minister who served in the Memphis Conference and later in the Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church. He also served as an army chaplain during World War II. Her mother, Bessie Copeland McCastlain, was from Windsor, North Carolina, and was a teacher for many years.

Rachel’s parents met while attending Duke University. Interestingly, Rachel met the love of her life, Johnny Ferguson Hill, of Murfreesboro, North Carolina, while they were also both students at Duke. They were married December 28, 1957. Previously, Rachel had studied at both Maryville College in Tennessee and at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland.

Rachel would tell anyone that her major role in life was being a mother, a role in which she gave her all and at which she excelled. From the beginning Rachel had a vision of what a good parent should be – a loving nurturer. She shared that vision with her husband and together they went about this high calling of being parents. As her children grew, she began to take on duties outside the home, first as a church secretary and later as an administrative assistant to a faculty at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.

As a practiced musician who continued to develop her piano talents, Rachel shared her skills with her daughter, practiced long hours with her husband – a church soloist, and accompanied her husband and three sons who formed a very active male quartet. Later in life, Rachel often took the role as substitute pianist at Marlinton United Methodist Church, where the congregation warmly supported her efforts to contribute to worship.

She was preceded in death by her parents and her sister, Elizabeth Josephine Downey.

She is survived by her husband, Johnny, of Pocahontas County; daughter, Rachel Leigh Foy, and husband, Greg Foy, of York, Pennsylvania; sons, Jeff (Johnny F. Hill II), and wife, Gina, of Cincinnati, Ohio; Fenton, and wife, Michelle, of Boulder, Colorado; Eric, and wife, Jennifer, of Cincinnati, Ohio; brother, Morris Shepherd McCastlain, Jr., of Lakeland, Florida.

She leaves many loving and adoring descendants: 10 grandchildren, five grandchildren-in-law, and seven great-grandchildren.

The visitation will be held at Marlinton United Metho-dist Church Saturday, April 30, 2022, from 10:30 a.m. until noon, followed by the funeral service at noon.

The family will provide a light lunch for attendees in the Fellowship Hall of the church after the service.

Interment will be held in Oxford, Ohio, June 4, 2022, following a memorial service at the Oxford United Methodist Church.

Rachel and Johnny adop-ted Pocahontas County as their home in the early 1990s, loved the mountains, and cherished its people. The family remains deeply appreciative of the support and love of the community.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Pocahontas Memorial Hospital Auxiliary, 150 Duncan Road Buckeye, WV 24924.