~ IN MEMORY ~
USAF veteran, WA/DL Capt. Joe B. Taylor
June 19, 1940 ~ May 13, 2026
Captain Joseph “Joe” Berens Taylor joined Western
Airlines 02-24-1969 and retired with Delta Air Lines based SLC. Joe is survived by his wife Margaret, and by
his large and very close extended family as well as many dear friends and
aviation colleagues.
Joe had most recently resided in Idaho : 1148 N Eagle Hills Way, Eagle, ID 83616.
Joe’s funeral service will be held May 19 at Eagle
Nazarene Church, Eagle, Idaho.
PCN memorial site
To view the obituary and share memories online please
visit the funeral home website at
https://www.aldenwaggoner.com/obituaries/joseph-taylor
Joseph Berens Taylor
d. May 13, 2026
Eagle ID
Joseph Berens Taylor, a retired airline pilot and
father of six, passed away of natural causes on May 13 in Boise. He was a month
shy of his 86th birthday.
He had recently been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, though
the condition never fully progressed. He remained friendly and retained his
sense of humor pretty much until the end.
For the past eight years, Joe lived in Eagle, Idaho,
with his wife, Margaret (née Thengvall; later Gee). They first met in high
school in the 1950s in Biggs, a small town in Northern California. As family
legend has it, Margaret’s father, Ralph, was taken with Joe’s athletic prowess
on the football field and basketball court and told him so after a couple of
games.
The Taylor family—Ralph, Leona, and Joe—moved to
Willows, California, where Joe had been born. (Joe’s older sisters, Lorajean,
known as Jeannie, and Lovie, had already moved out.) He attended his senior
year in high school there, playing on the football and basketball teams.
Joe was offered a full football and basketball
scholarship to the University of North Dakota. He excelled on the football
team, playing halfback on offense and safety on defense. During the 1961
season, he rushed for 248 yards, had 135 receiving yards, and scored 38 points.
He was selected as the team’s “most valuable back.” His player number, 24,
remained his favorite number throughout his life.
As a teenager, Joe was captivated by the sight of crop
dusters sweeping low over nearby fields. The thought of becoming a pilot
thrilled him, and he decided to learn how to fly a plane and pursue a career in
aviation.
In college, Joe enrolled in ROTC, and after graduation
he joined the U.S. Air Force. He was stationed at Reese Air Force Base in
Lubbock, Texas, where he learned to fly the T-38, and later Otis Air National
Guard Base in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, where he gained significant flight time.
After five years, he deployed to Vietnam, stationed in Korat, Thailand. He
primarily flew T-38s on reconnaissance missions. He also piloted Lockheed
C-121s and U-10s, sometimes landing them in areas without prepared runways, including
short jungle clearings. His third son, Brett, was born in 1968 while Joe was
overseas. His fourth son, Rick, was named after a close friend serving with
him.
After returning to the United States, Joe became a
pilot for Western Airlines. He loved Western, with its memorable ad tagline,
“The only way to fly.” Around the same time, he also joined the Air National
Guard. He flew Cessna O-2 aircraft, sometimes transporting the governor of
California and other dignitaries. At air shows, he became known for flying the
plane backward, made possible by strong winds and low air speeds.
For many years with Western, he was based at the San
Francisco International Airport and commuted from towns many miles away,
including Dixon. Joe served as first officer on the Boeing 737 and later the
727. In 1987, Delta Air Lines and Western merged. At Delta, he mastered
additional aircraft, including the DC-10. In the later years of his flying
career, he served as captain on the 757 and 767.
Following mandatory retirement at age 60 in 2000, he
worked part-time as a simulator flight instructor for Delta pilots. He also
would assert to anybody who would listen that age 60 was too young for
mandatory retirement. The flying public was missing out on healthy and highly
experienced pilots, he said. In 2007, the longtime “Age 60 Rule” was abolished,
and the mandatory retirement age was lifted to 65.
In retirement, Joe enjoyed playing golf, occasional
tennis, and watching sports, including football, basketball, and hockey. He
especially enjoyed watching his son Grant play tennis and cheering on his
grandchildren in golf and many other sports.
In his later years, he became more active in his church
community, and his Christian faith became an ever more meaningful source of
peace and strength. He found great meaning in reading Scripture and discussing
questions of faith with others.
Joe’s adult life unfolded in three chapters. He and his
first wife, Bev (née Ferris, now Hansen), made their home in Northern
California, where they raised five children: Joe Jr., Tim, Brett, Rick, and
Heather. They were married for 15 years.
Later, with his second wife, Beverly (née Arthur), he
lived in Salt Lake City and welcomed a son, Grant. They were married for 34
years, until her death in January 2017.
In Boise, Joe found happiness with his third wife,
Margaret, and was blessed with three adult stepchildren: Colette, David, and
Ian. He also delighted in a large and growing group of step-grandchildren and
great-grandchildren, who brought him much pride and joy.
His immediate beloved surviving grandchildren include
Benjamin, Morgan, Addison, and Colten, from Brett and Stephanie; Taylor and
Reagan, from Heather and Jerry; Ella, from Tim (and now Tatiana); and Giuliana
(Gigi) and Griffin, from Grant and Cierra.
Years ago, Joe liked to joke that with his first five
kids he had created his own basketball team. Over the years, this team grew
into a full bench and spilled into the bleachers. One day, it may fill an
entire stadium. And somewhere high above, a jersey bearing the number 24 will
float in the rafters.
A funeral service will be held on Tuesday, May 19, at
11:00 a.m. at Eagle Nazarene Church, 1001 W. State Street, Eagle, Idaho. He
will be laid to rest in Salt Lake City at a later date.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Cru
(formerly Campus Crusade for Christ) or Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
