January 22, 2026, 91, Goldsboro – Curtis Alvin Hinton died January 22, 2026 at his home in Goldsboro at the age of 91.
A native of Mulberry, Arkansas, he was the son of Jacob Martin Hinton and Esther Savely Hinton, the ninth of 12 children.
He married Mary Jean Lambert on August 10, 1957. They were married for 62 years, until her passing on June 1, 2020. They had three children, Cheryl, Cathy, and Curt.
He was a veteran of the U.S. Navy, serving 22 years and retiring as lieutenant. He was awarded the Navy-Marine Corps Medal for heroism. After retirement from service, he worked for Carolina Power & Light for 22 years as an operation foreman.
He was a lifelong fan of the St. Louis Cardinals, and has a brick inscribed with his name at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, Missouri. Competitive by nature, he was an avid walker and was proud of the trophies he earned for competing in charity walking events. He loved to play cards and dominoes with his family and always had a joke to share. He remained active all his life, winning his last game of dominoes the day before he passed away.
He was a longtime member of Stoney Creek Free Will Baptist Church, the Ambassador Sunday School class, and a regular attendee at Tuesday morning Bible study.
He enlisted in the Navy on July 2, 1952 and after completing boot camp in San Diego, California, he served on the U.S.S. Philippine Sea for almost four years. During his career, he served aboard the U.S.S. Valley Forge, U.S.S. Putnam, U.S.S. D.H. Fox, U.S.S. Springfield, U.S.S. Albany and U.S.S. Yellowstone. He also served as chief security officer at the Naval Weapons Station, Goose Creek, South Carolina. His naval career included stations in Portsmouth, Virginia; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Villefrance-sur-Mer, France; Goose Creek, South Carolina; Boston, Massachusetts; Jacksonville, Florida; and Charleston, South Carolina. He retired from the Navy in 1974.
He was awarded the Navy-Marine Corps Medal for heroism by Vice Admiral Willliam Gentner, Jr., commander of the U.S. Sixth Fleet, for his actions on November 3, 1963. While serving aboard the U.S.S. Springfield as boiler officer, he saved the lives of several of his men when a turbine disintegrated, filling the fire room with life-threatening steam. He ordered the evacuation of the fire room and although badly burned and nearly overcome by the escaping steam, he returned to the room and personally secured the steam supply to the pump, saving the entire ship from possible disaster.
Surviving are daughters Cheryl Hinton Hooks of Wake Forest and Cathy Hinton Pope (Dan) of Cary, son Curtis A. Hinton, Jr. (Robin) of Goldsboro; and brother Jake Douglas Hinton of Hardy, Arkansas. Also surviving are grandchildren, Jennifer Johnson of Montclair, New Jersey; Megan Johnson and Fernando Figueroa of Los Angeles, California; Amy Johnson and Matthew King of Wake Forest, North Carolina; Reagan and Eric Pendleton of Alexandria, Virginia; Daniel C. Pope III of Morrisville, North Carolina; Caroline and Spencer Koenig of Raleigh, North Carolina; Trey and Maddie Hinton of Princeton, North Carolina; and Kyle Hooks of Wake Forest, North Carolina; great-grandchildren, Marc-Roman Guercio, Elise Figueroa, Charles Johnson King, Vince Pendleton, Audrey Pendleton, Samuel Johnson King, Mary Kate Hinton, Karsten Pendleton and Camellia Koenig.
A graveside service will be held at noon on Monday, February 2, 2026 at the Eastern Carolina Veterans Cemetery at 164 Long’s Plant Farm Road, Goldsboro.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Stoney Creek Free Will Baptist Church, 752 Stoney Creek Church Road, Goldsboro, North Carolina 27534.
