Wilbur Eugene Binning

Wilbur Eugene Binning, always known as Gene, was born in Cincinnati, OH on April 9, 1935 to Wilbur A. Binning and Marian (Wesche) Binning and passed away peacefully after a long illness on May 7, 2025. Gene grew up on the family farm in Perintown and graduated from Owensville High School in 1952. He met Coleen Hamlin through friends at Gene's church while she was singing at a Good Friday service. They married on August 24, 1963 and lived for a time on Rt. 50 before buying a home on Laurel Avenue in Milford. Gene worked for Indian Hills Exempted Village School District for 34 plus years. Gene was a tinker and fixer of all things broken, and made wonderful bright red cardinal whirligigs. More than anything, Gene loved being outdoors in all seasons-gardening, mowing the grass, trimming shrubs, shoveling snow, or painting and repainting the white fence. His vegetable garden yielded abundant produce- zucchini, tomatoes, green beans (sometimes stuffed into a child's pocket for snacking) were freely shared with neighbors and friends. Coleen turned heaps of cucumbers into delicious pickles- always a sellout at the Methodist Church bazaar. He always had time to greet anyone walking in the neighborhood, dogs included. Once in a while, he could be seen sunning himself in the backyard.
Gene was a life-long member of the Methodist Church, serving as an usher in Milford for many years. When his mother began living at SEM Haven, Gene began a daily ritual of walking over and visiting with her and other residents, becoming a fixture at SEM. When Parkinson's Disease made living at home too difficult, Gene himself moved into SEM, which already had become his home away from home.
Gene loved sports especially baseball and was a dedicated Cincinnati Reds fan. When the Bengals came to town, Gene and a friend had seasons tickets plus an extra to take others along. Also an avid reader, he read the Cincinnati Enquirer front to back everyday and especially liked books by Doris Kearns Goodwin. Gene and Coleen loved traveling and made many road trips near and far. Regular outings on the calendar included Amish country in Adams County, the Burlington Antique market, trips to Indiana, Michigan, and Kentucky. He loved to ride any railroad- steam trains, cog trains, any train. For many years, Gene and Coleen traveled to Cape Cod making various side trips along the way. At the Cape, Gene was a true beach bum spending sunup to sundown near the ocean where he walked for miles on the beach and enjoyed eating seafood at Moby Dick's in Wellfleet. Gene loved to eat all kinds of food, but he especially looked forward to pancakes, spicy sausage and eggs over easy every Sunday with left overs during the week and peanuts with grapes for an evening snack.
Gene will be remembered for his good humor, easy smile, willingness to help with whatever needed doing, and his ability to carry on everyday no matter what the challenge. He is survived by his wife, Coleen (Hamlin) Binning, a sister Connie Gerard (Steve), a nephew Chris and niece Ann, cousins and his and many friends. Services will take place at Evans Funeral Home, Milford on May 13, 2025, with visitation at 10:00am and the service at 11:00 am. Interment will be at Greenlawn Cemetery in Milford. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Gene's memory may be made to SEM Haven, 225 Cleveland Ave, Milford, OH 45150.