Darrell Horning

1943 - 2026

Darrell Horning
January 28, 1943 - January 11, 2026
Darrell W. Horning, Professor Emeritus of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Computer Science at the University of New Haven, explored digital signal processing and fuzzy logic and educated thousands of young engineers. Darrell was born in Glendive, Montana. He pursued science from a young age in rural Edgemont, South Dakota, with his brother, Bruno, exploring local mines, working on farms during the summers and setting off explosives. Darrell enrolled at the South Dakota School of Mines, where he was a lifelong member of the Triangle Fraternity, and went on to receive his Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana in Computer and Electrical Engineering.
Darrell would have hated this obituary, as he was the least pretentious person, finding pedigree unimportant. He had a wry sense of humor and was kind, thoughtful, and extremely loyal to those he loved. Darrell was preceded in death by his parents, Mary Horning (Gaub) and Erwin Horning, and his sister, Shirley Hayes. He is survived by his wife, Linda Ann Horning; his two children, Avery Horning Ruf and Otis Horning; his daughter-in-law, Sara Jordeno; and his two grandchildren, Dante and Isra Ruf. Additionally, he is survived by his siblings, Beth Hendricks and Dennis (Bruno) Horning.
Darrell was a New Haven local, who could be regularly found having Spanish mackerel sashimi and a sake bomb at Jerry Sans, a beer at Delaney's or buying organic granola at Edge of the Woods. He was an avid road biker and loved summers swimming at Misquamicut or exploring the bluffs on Block Island. We know that you are watching over us, we love you and we will see you again.
If you wish, donations in Darrell's name may be made to The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research, https://shorturl.at/wjM94 .